# Wineador Build



## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Hello All!
Building a wineador. Have read a lot of threads.
Using an Avanti 12 bottle chiller. Looking to order some draws and a shelf. Plan on using some boxes to stabilize until the draws arrive. 
I have two questions right now:
1- Has anyone NOT plugged the drain in the chiller? How did it affect your humidity?
2- For those that used boxes until your shelves/draws arrived, how did it affect your stability when you switched?


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## tony (Feb 2, 2008)

i did not plug my drain on the chiller. it did/does not affect humidity in any way shape or form.

i did not use boxes in mine before the drawers arrived. once the drawers did arrive it took about 18 hours for them to peak at 65% rh with 2 lbs of beads and has remained steady since (almost a month now).


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## HawaiianStyle (Apr 13, 2013)

Didn't plug the drain as well and I'm stable at 65 rH and 69 degrees. I am waiting on my shelves from Forrest and in the mean time bought SC wood and made temp shelves.


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## Isonj (Apr 12, 2013)

Brian -
I did plug the drain using hot glue which worked well. I didn't really notice any change, but at least I do not have to worry about it.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Thanks for the replies so far!
I'm going to leave mine open at first and see. Read a couple of post with a condensation problems and if leaving the drain open doesn't affect the RH, the moisture has someplace to go!!


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## OratorORourke (May 9, 2013)

Isonj said:


> Brian -
> I did plug the drain using hot glue which worked well. I didn't really notice any change, but at least I do not have to worry about it.


I did the same as Jim, plugged with hot glue. I didn't want to have to worry about it as a possible cause to potential Rh problems. The great thing is about the hot glue, is you can pull that stuff out at any time. Right now I have a 1/2 lb bag of beads in that spot to catch any condensation, so the drain hole for me is not required.

That being said, with all the threads and blogs I have read on Wineador builds, I haven't heard of anyone having a problem due to the drain hole. For me, it was just piece of mind.

I can't answer question 2 as I have held out from filling the unit until my shelves arrive...


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## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

Look forward to following your build progress!

Remember to post up some pics too! :smoke:


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

hawaiianstyle How long have you been running your setup?
oratororourke Seeing as we're in the same geographical area, I can only hope to have the same success with mine when done!
rayjax pics to follow shortly.

Still waiting for my HF beads to arrive and trying to decide if I'm going to add additional fans for better air circulation!


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## Packerjh (Nov 29, 2009)

Initially I didn't plug the hole...my unit runs a lot, and I had a lot of condensation that was collecting in the back, outside of the unit. RH was always low and I was frequently adding DW to my KL. Plugged the hole and moisture stayed in but puddled in the bottom of my unit. Now I have directed the condensation to flow into a container of KL in the bottom of my unit, under the bottom drawer. Moisture stays in, RH stays where I want it, I rarely add DW. Oh...My ceegars smoke GREAT!


I think the main variable is how much your chiller runs...California is HOT HOT HOT and I can't afford to keep my house as cool as my cigars like...as a result, my chiller runs a lot.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Thx Pakerjh I foresee my unit running a lot because right now the ambient temp in my house is between 79*F & 84*F and it's not even summer yet! And likewise, can't afford to run the AC all day!
I'm going to double check for the post where they were having condensation issues and see if their unit ran often!


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## HawaiianStyle (Apr 13, 2013)

It has been about a month. It took 2 weeks to stabilize at this rH with my home made shelves and about 7 empty boxes in there. I have 1.5lbs of beads in the bottom and .5lbs on the top shelf.



brimy623 said:


> hawaiianstyle How long have you been running your setup?
> oratororourke Seeing as we're in the same geographical area, I can only hope to have the same success with mine when done!
> rayjax pics to follow shortly.
> 
> Still waiting for my HF beads to arrive and trying to decide if I'm going to add additional fans for better air circulation!


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

HawaiianStyle said:


> It has been about a month. It took 2 weeks to stabilize at this rH with my home made shelves and about 7 empty boxes in there. I have 1.5lbs of beads in the bottom and .5lbs on the top shelf.


I used the HF calculator and it said I only need 4 oz of beads to handle 1837 cu in (12 bottle chiller), but I ordered 1/2 a lb. From what I've read I can always add more beads. I'll just used some empty boxes until I get my drawers & shelf.


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## HawaiianStyle (Apr 13, 2013)

I wanted to put more beads than less. This method will help your unit recover faster when you open the door or add more sticks that may have been in transit at a less desirable rH. My temps here are constantly around 85 degrees and humidity averages 75+%.



brimy623 said:


> I used the HF calculator and it said I only need 4 oz of beads to handle 1837 cu in (12 bottle chiller), but I ordered 1/2 a lb. From what I've read I can always add more beads. I'll just used some empty boxes until I get my drawers & shelf.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

OK BOTL, I need HELP!!!!
Please forgive the phone pics, I will use "a real camera" soon!
I Had the boxes in the wineador with 1/2 lb of HF beads. Based on the measurements the HF calulator, I only need 4oz of beads. I have the beads in 4 tubes spread out thru the wineador and the rest in a tupperware dish at the bottom.
I had it at a constant 65RH for 24 hrs with the empty boxes and the beads.
When I put the sticks in the boxes, my RH "PLUMMETED" down to 50%!!!! 
I hydrated the beads, again with DW, in the tupperware and the RH climbed back to 60% Mind you, the tubes NEVER seemed to distribute the moisture they contain. I also have a wet sponge in a dish on the top shelf.
I do plan on getting some more beads but based on the HF calculator, I have more than enough.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!
Right now my HYGRO (calibrated with a Boveda kit) is reading 56%RH at 68*F


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

OK BOTL, I need HELP!!!!
Please forgive the phone pics, I will use "a real camera" soon!
I Had the boxes in the wineador with 1/2 lb of HF 65% beads. Based on the measurements the HF calulator, I only need 4oz of beads. I have the beads in 4 tubes spread out thru the wineador and the rest in a tupperware dish at the bottom.
I had it at a constant 65RH for 24 hrs with the empty boxes and the beads.
When I put the sticks in the boxes, my RH "PLUMMETED" down to 50%!!!! 
I hydrated the beads, again with DW, in the tupperware and the RH climbed back to 60% Mind you, the tubes NEVER seemed to distribute the moisture they contain. I also have a wet sponge in a dish on the top shelf.
I do plan on getting some more beads but based on the HF calculator, I have more than enough.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!
Right now my HYGRO (calibrated with a Boveda kit) is reading 56%RH at 68*F
View attachment 44465
View attachment 44466
View attachment 44467
View attachment 44468


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Oh! By the way, in one of the boxes I have a Boveda 69 pak and in another I have a humi-care water pillow(it says 67%RH) that came with some sicks that I ordered.


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## copper0426 (Aug 15, 2012)

If this is all today RELAX everything you put in will drop the RH give it a little time.


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## OratorORourke (May 9, 2013)

@brimy623 what is your Rh at today?

Is is slowly climbing?

If you read my build, the same thing happened to me. But within a couple days, everything balanced out.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

OratorORourke said:


> @brimy623 what is your Rh at today?
> 
> Is is slowly climbing?
> 
> If you read my build, the same thing happened to me. But within a couple days, everything balanced out.


 @OratorORourke This morning it read 50%RH. then about 2pm it read 48%RH! at this point I wet my beads in the tupperware at the bottom. Mind you, I have a dish on the top shelf with a wet sponge (DW of course). Went out to work. Came back about 8:30pm it's reading 52%RH. I opened it to get something to burn and while it was open, it jumped up to 63%RH!!! Just looked at hygro thru the door and it's reading 52%RH. I don't get it!!!!!!

Trying to do as Tony suggested and "relax" and I have been following you build so, yes I do remember when you loaded up the RH went crazy for a bit. Just hoping mine stabilizes like yours.
Trying to get some shelves/drawers so that I can fit more sticks without playing tetris and I think the SC will help stabilize the RH (I hope).


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## Yamoks (May 19, 2013)

Brimy, do you just have one hygrometer and did you calibrate it? Just wondering since most hygrometers take a few minutes to read and the fact that yours jumped 11% just from opening the door to grab a stick may indicate something's not working right.


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## Gdaddy (Sep 20, 2012)

This may help...

*Humidity Control*

_"The relative humidity within a fridge will be more difficult to control then a non-cooled cabinet. This is attributed to the formation of condensation when the interior is cooled which drops the humidity within the fridge. As such, it is recommended that a larger then normal humidity control system be used. For example, if you are using beads, I would add at least an additional 50% over the recommended amount. You may also want to employ an active humidification system to supplement the beads but I don't feel it is required. Remember, the more your fridge cools, the more condensation will form and cause more fluctuations in the humidity.

To control condensation (auto defrost), most fridges with a freezer compartment utilize a heating element[6] whereas many wine coolers use a drainage system that evaporates the excess water using hot air from a fan. We will concentrate on fridges without a freezer compartment as they are not recommended for cigar storage. *We want to keep the water instead of having it drain away so we can return it to the air. How to do this will depend on what fridge you purchase and where the drain is located. However, it is generally recommended to plug the drain and divert the water back into your beads. *I personally filled the drain system with insulating foam then used a sealant to plug the drain itself. I also placed humidity sheets from Heartfelt Industries along the water collection path and on the bottom to absorb the water and release it back into the air. This seems to work alright but condensation is still forming. Make sure you do not place boxes close to the back wall or water will make its way inside them and potentially ruin your cigars.

If multiple hygrometers are available, place them at various heights within the fridge. If you notice large differences (+/-5%), you may wish to add an additional fan to help circulate the air. Many people find using battery operated fans, like those from Oust to be satisfactory.

Once you have your humidity system setup, monitor it for a few days until it aligns with the ranges you expect."_


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## Gdaddy (Sep 20, 2012)

So it would seem reasonable to conclude that the moisture in the unit is being condensed and drained out of the box and thereby lowering your RH. You add water into the air, the cooling unit condenses it into water and it then drains away. So you have to continuously keep adding more water.

Plug the hole and retain the water inside the sealed box and stop removing it.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

@Yamoks - Xikar hygro, calibrated with a Boveda calibration kit!!
@Gdaddy - Don, thx for the info. I guess I'll plug the drain!! I do have 2X the "recommended" amount of HF beads, but plan to get more. Gonna look for some way that I can spread them out.

This morning my RH was at 70%.:ask:


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## OratorORourke (May 9, 2013)

brimy623 said:


> @OratorORourke This morning it read 50%RH. then about 2pm it read 48%RH! at this point I wet my beads in the tupperware at the bottom. Mind you, I have a dish on the top shelf with a wet sponge (DW of course). Went out to work. Came back about 8:30pm it's reading 52%RH. I opened it to get something to burn and while it was open, it jumped up to 63%RH!!! Just looked at hygro thru the door and it's reading 52%RH. I don't get it!!!!!!
> 
> Trying to do as Tony suggested and "relax" and I have been following you build so, yes I do remember when you loaded up the RH went crazy for a bit. Just hoping mine stabilizes like yours.
> Trying to get some shelves/drawers so that I can fit more sticks without playing tetris and I think the SC will help stabilize the RH (I hope).





brimy623 said:


> @Yamoks - Xikar hygro, calibrated with a Boveda calibration kit!!
> @Gdaddy - Don, thx for the info. I guess I'll plug the drain!! I do have 2X the "recommended" amount of HF beads, but plan to get more. Gonna look for some way that I can spread them out.
> 
> This morning my RH was at 70%.:ask:


70% is closer to where you want to be than 50! Sounds like all of the panic spraying of DW, which is what I did, over humidified the unit. Mine is still recovering from that. My bottom is 69, middle 65, top 65. Bottom is 69 because most of my beads are there and I saturated the hell out of them when my unit dropped Rh down in the 50's after adding my sticks.

Plug the drain as you plan and I am positive once you get the beads trained and the the unit has time to stabilize, you will be fine.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

OratorORourke said:


> 70% is closer to where you want to be than 50! Sounds like all of the panic spraying of DW, which is what I did, over humidified the unit. Mine is still recovering from that. My bottom is 69, middle 65, top 65. Bottom is 69 because most of my beads are there and I saturated the hell out of them when my unit dropped Rh down in the 50's after adding my sticks.
> 
> Plug the drain as you plan and I am positive once you get the beads trained and the the unit has time to stabilize, you will be fine.


Chris I don't know what is going on!!:frusty:
later this morning the RH drops to 53%. then it climbs to 62%, then back down to 50%!! Now mind you I haven't opened it!
Then I opened it & took out a stick, then it shoots back to 70%!!!
I'm going to take out a couple of sticks that I plan to smoke, unplug it to plug the drain & then leave it for a week or two to see what happens.


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## Gdaddy (Sep 20, 2012)

When is the last time you changed the battery in the Hygrometer? FYI... my last battery lasted only 5 months.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Gdaddy said:


> When is the last time you changed the battery in the Hygrometer? FYI... my last battery lasted only 5 months.


Only bought it maybe 6 weeks ago!


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## Gdaddy (Sep 20, 2012)

The battery that came with the unit could be years old. 

I had the same problem and I switched out the battery, recalibrated and it corrected the erratic behavior. The batteries are not expensive and you'll need them anyway.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Gdaddy said:


> The battery that came with the unit could be years old.
> 
> I had the same problem and I switched out the battery, recalibrated and it corrected the erratic behavior. The batteries are not expensive and you'll need them anyway.


I'll change it & hopefully that fixes the erratic readings.
That would be weird because the temp has been consistent.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

I think one of the boxes in my wineador is sucking up my humidity!!:hmm:

Looking for a stick to indulge in and some of the sticks in one of the boxes were really soft. And I'm sure they were not that way when I put them in!
Gonna put them in a ziplock bag with a boveda 69. then take that box out and see if my RH stabilizes.


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## OratorORourke (May 9, 2013)

@brimy623 any update?


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Hey Chris,
No update yet! Got a little busy so I've been making sure my beads are wet & I have a sponge with some DW inside.
I also have been following the thread about using tupperware with Boveda paks inside for proper humidity & keeping them in the wine cooler for temp until I can get some SC drawers/shelves.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

FINALLY got around to plugging the drain!!
Let's see how the RH reacts.

Will post results tomorrow.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

FINALLY got around to plugging the drain!!
Let's see how the RH reacts.

Will post results tomorrow.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

48+ hrs in and still losing rh!
Checked drain hole and I didn't do a good job plugging it. The glue came right out.
I am going to redo it tomorrow.:-|:faint:


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## Josh23 (Jul 13, 2013)

Looks like I will be going the Wineador route since this Mississippi heat is brutal. Keep us updated so I will know what/what not to do when I start my project.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

@Josh23 I hear you about the heat & good luck with your build whenever you get around to it! A lot of info & experience around here. Still having rh issues with my build.

Re-plugged my drain this morning!
Letting it dry a bit before I turn the fridge back on. Had quite a bit of condensation on the floor in the back and a bit on a box. Gotta stay focused and stay diligent about correcting this issue.


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## Isonj (Apr 12, 2013)

brimy623 said:


> 48+ hrs in and still losing rh!
> Checked drain hole and I didn't do a good job plugging it. The glue came right out.
> I am going to redo it tomorrow.:-|:faint:


Did you make sure the seal on your door is sitting properly? I had a corner get pushed into the track and I started to slowly lose rh. Just a thought


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Isonj said:


> Did you make sure the seal on your door is sitting properly? I had a corner get pushed into the track and I started to slowly lose rh. Just a thought


after seeing your post I went and double checked. The gasket is seated properly and there are no kinks anywhere! And I'm guessing that all of the wineadors out there have a magnetic gasket?! So, the seal should be tight.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

3 hrs after plugging the drain, unit still unplugged with 1/2 lb of 65% HF beads; my hygro is reading 70% rh at 80*F.
The beads are wet in a tupperware at the bottom and in 3 tubes. About to throw all of my sticks back in and power up.
This heat has me worried! The wrapper on one of my sticks is starting to crack. Don't want to lose any sticks.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Plugged the unit back in about midnight; hygro reading 90rh/84*F.
at 7:30am it read 47/63.
I put all of my sticks back in.
at 8:30am it read 67/65.
When I get back home I'll check for condensation and see what the fluctuation is! Talk to you guys later! :dunno:


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Sorry to hear you are having so many issues.
One thought i just had is to check the placement of you hygrometer. If its in the direct flow of air coming from the cooling fan its going to yoyo like there is no tomorrow, drain plugged or not. Every time the cooling cycles on the RH of that air is going to drop then go back up when the cooling cycles off. 

Personally Im going to try skipping with the plugging up of the drain hole and just pop a small bag of beads in the inside tray where condensation collects. Mines been plugged in for several days and i only noted a small amount of condensation in the inside tray with the outside being dry as a bone. I just have some empty boxes in it now with a 1/2 pound of beads (waiting on heartfelt to open back up to get more, took advantage of the 10% discount) and Im steady at 67F/66%RH. My ambient conditions are 75F/50%RH. 

Your placement of the cooler could also play a factor in run time of the unit. If the temperature at the hot side of the peltier fluctuates so will the cold side. Same principles apply here as with Humis, you dont want it where the temp and air flow is changing all the time. This was the deciding factor when I put mine over in with my home entertainment equipment. The other open spots in the room have too much air flow from the central air.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Thx for the suggestions Rob!
The placement of my hygro could be part of the problem. it's on the middle shelf, directly in front of the unit's fan. but it has some boxes and plastic bags between them (haven't been able to get my drawers and shelves yet).
I will move it and see what happens.
As far as the placement of the unit, it's off in a corner where there is no excess airflow from fans or the AC when it's in use. Tried to put it where there are no extremes.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Thx for the suggestions Rob!
The placement of my hygro could be part of the problem. it's on the middle shelf, directly in front of the unit's fan. but it has some boxes and plastic bags between them (haven't been able to get my drawers and shelves yet).
I will move it and see what happens.
As far as the placement of the unit, it's off in a corner where there is no excess airflow from fans or the AC when it's in use. Tried to put it where there are no extremes.


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## atsushi (Jun 29, 2013)

Does everyone here prefer the NewAir model? Im looking into getting a wineador (actually, as soon as one pops up on airnwater, its mine). The 280 is good for about 500 sticks right?


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

atsushi said:


> Does everyone here prefer the NewAir model? Im looking into getting a wineador (actually, as soon as one pops up on airnwater, its mine). The 280 is good for about 500 sticks right?


It seems that way, right?! But you can't blame them. If it's tested and works plus (seemingly) the least expensive why "fix" it?!
Mine is an Avanti 12 bottle. I was impatient and really don't have the room for a 28.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

I went for the Newair for a few reasons. Firstly its tried and true and I see a lot of builds with them. Secondly I like the look of the all black 280e.
airnwater isnt the only show in town, there are many others. I got mine from amazon for less with free 2 day shipping (amazon prime) that ended up being overnight. Ordered it late on a Saturday night/early Sunday morning and it showed up Monday. Never seen that happen before.

Amazon.com: NewAir AW-280E Classic 28 Bottle Thermoelectric Wine Collector, Black: Appliances

On another note I installed a 120mm fan in mine today and ran the wire through the drain, it was tough getting it in there but its in. Didnt want to drill holes! Leaving the drain open so any possible overflow will go out the back instead of down the back of the inside. Nothing has come out of it yet and I filled a nylon stocking just big enough to fit in the inside cavity with 70% gel. I had a little laying around from when I was doing 70%rh and figured that this would absorb any condensate and release it faster with there being 2 lbs of 65% beads in there vs 4oz of 70% gel. Just want it to catch any condensate and release it back into the cooler and it blocks the drain somewhat so no airflow through that little hole either. Not much in the way of holding it in place so I ran a single strip of electrical tape across the front of it to hold it up in the cavity. 3 hours later and its at 64% top to bottom and 67F. Ill post up my build when I get the drawers and start seasoning them.


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## atsushi (Jun 29, 2013)

I'm def leaning towards the newair. There doesn't seem to be much difference to me between the 280 and the 281 though. As long as its thermoelectric thats all that really seems to matter. I was leaning towards Airnwater do to it being 150 bucks for a scratch and dent, but with my luck the outer casing would be absolutely destroyed!


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Yeah you are taking a chance with a S&D online. Its different if you can eyeball it in person and decide that its still OK for your purposes but online they fail to represent exactly what the damage is. I know I would be chapped if I went through all the steps just to get a cooler with the top caved in or the door bent etc.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

atsushi said:


> Does everyone here prefer the NewAir model? Im looking into getting a wineador (actually, as soon as one pops up on airnwater, its mine). The 280 is good for about 500 sticks right?


Here is some cigar p0rn for you.

Looks like a large drawer filled with only robustos holds 90 sticks.

http://www.cigarforums.net/forums/v...-pic-your-wineador-thread-26.html#post3861247


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## atsushi (Jun 29, 2013)

Wow....now thats what I'm talking about. I don't know if i'll have that many UC's, but that is amazing. The only non robs I have now are just from the samplers I got when I first started. I'm trying to burn them down, but sadly, there are a good many gurkhas...


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Gurka was added to my dont buy list and actually threw several in the trash as I didnt want to wish them on anyone else. I tried a few and just are not my thing. Just as soon have a phillies blunt.

Just wanted to point you in the direction of how many will fit and those photos are the best representation I have seen anyhow.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

68/68 let's see if it fluctuates!! Looking good right now!!


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Sounds good, Im still at 64%/67F, but still just empty boxes, spare dividers etc. Its definitely taking on the cedar aroma.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

That's sweet! If it stays stable there you're just about golden.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Golden until I get the drawers in it, patiently waiting.........


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Hey guys. Hope it's okay to jump in here as I am having the same challenge brimy623. Just joined after lurking for a while so this is my first post. I'd like to post some info and whatnot but wanted to make sure before I just start posting on brimys thread.

I can start a new thread if need be just let me know either way please.

Rob


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Firstly Welcome to puff.

Post away, Im sure Brian wont mind but your new puff name is Cleatus, Rob is already taken...

Rob


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Rob (Cleatus):mrgreen:,
Welcome! & Rob is right, fire away!
If we can help each other figure this out, I'm all in.
7:00 am; hygro on middle shelf - 47rh/64F
10:40 am; floor - 68/68
Move to very top shelf will post in a few hours.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Thanks Rob.

For a couple of years I have used the following setup. A humidor within a wine cooler with a wireless hygrometer from Radio Shack to let me know the temp and RH at a glance. The transponder was kept in the bottom of the humidor opposite corn of the beads.
















Then...I started to run out of room. So After researching decided to go the Wineador rout as I have another box + 5 sticks coming today. As usual I got in a hurry and I think my challenge (which is identical to Brian's) is that I did not season my SC which has been sitting in its original cardboard box, in the attic, in Florida for about 10 years.....

I soaked half of my HF beads (sorry I don't know the amount of beads, I think a pound?) with DW. Then later added the Boveda 69RH packets (3 total). When the RH stayed around 54%, I added an old humi device soaked in DW, then taped the drain hole closed with a piece of duct tape.

This morning (about 8 hours later from the last opening and mods) the RH inside the Wineador and the ambient RH in my bedroom where it is located read the same at 56%. Now, 3 hours later, the Wineador is reading 57% with the room ambient at 54%.

The top numbers are the inside reading the bottom are the rooms ambient:








I had a small computer fan rigged up in there last night that died out (9v battery) after a few hours. I also called my wife and had her move the transponder from the top shelf to the bottom shelf after reading Rob's advice thinking the fan from the unit may be interfering with the readings.

Here it was before moving the transponder:








Here's a pic she sent me after moving the transponder:








Adding the shelves:









I'm almost certain I can get this dialed in once I get home and season the SC shelving. However, I was considering getting one of the Oasis systems then read it was probably overkill and would not hold the RH steady in such a small environment. Then I saw that they make a smaller version. Has anyone had any experience with the one made for up to 8 cubic feet? Is this still overkill?

Thank you!

Sincerely,

Cleatus.....


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Here is the RH device I was speaking of. Its from HF and is 6" long x 2" wide x 3 3/8" tall.









Also, here's the pic of "Adding the shelves" for some reason it wouldn't post after several tries in my original reply.

View attachment 79110


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

I don't think you need an active humidifier at all. Once you get it seasoned and stable the maintenance will drop considerably. The coolers are sealed up pretty tight, more so than most humidors, so active humidification isn't so much of a concern. I have seen a few use them and ended up having to dry out their beads because the humidity continued to climb without the active humidifier ever turning on just due to the wet sponge in the humidifier releasing moisture. They aren't two way devices, they only put moisture in, not take it out which is what you will need if trying to keep the humidity down around 65%. You will find that most sticks arrive over 70% so they actually need moisture removed to alleviate burn issues and a bitter/acid taste. I would say just put in two pounds of beads and call it a day. If your humidity drops, spritz them a little with water.

Another thing that worries me about the active humidification devices is when the cooling is active the air humidity is going to drop, just plain science there. If it drops and the active kicks on once it stops you will have air that is too moist and end up with condensation issues and saturated beads.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

3:30pm - hygro on top shelf - 70rh/61*F and a fair amount of condensation going on!:noidea:


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

I can see that happening with 70% RH and with a 61 temp it ran for a bit.

Still sitting at 66/66


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Went home at lunch and added water to my HF beads. It's probably only a half pound bag after looking at HF's site. I ordered another pound.

I saturated about 3/4 of the beads in a glass bowl, drained and spooned them back into the "sock".

I also received and de-cellophaned 29 sticks and added them in the original box (24 + 5 pack).

Current reading at 4:15 Eastern is 61%/68F.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

8:30 pm

58%/69f


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

This morning mine us sitting at 60% and 69F. I still haven't had the chance to take the cedar shelves out and season them properly. I plan on ordering some drawers from Forest today. 

If I get my humi up to my target of 65% without seasoning the SC shelves in there now, will I still need to later or wil they have more than likely absorbed enough moisture from the beads?


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Leave them in there! Yes they will absorb the moisture from the beads and the reason why your RH is climbing slowly and will be seasoned nicely. Ive got nothing in mine but empty boxes and some dividers that arent in use just for a medium to keep it steady and add the cedar aroma. Once my drawers from Forrest arrive I have to start all over with them seasoning in the wineador. However when they are being seasoned the cooling is going to be off and just the PC fan circulating air. Seasoning happens much more rapidly without the cooling.

My plan of attack for seasoning the drawers when they get here is to unplug the wineador, pull the beads and allow them to dry up a bit, put a heated moist sponge in each drawer (heated slightly in the microwave to get warm but not to the point of producing steam), and wait until the humidity gets to the high 70s. Once that happens I will put the beads back and wait for it to come down to the target humidity then stock it up with sticks that I am taking out of my other humidors that are already sitting in the 65% range.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

I added this RV fridge fan last night for a few hours and the RH dropped to 58%. I removed it before going to bed and it was back to 60% as posted this morning. I hear the fan on the wineador quietly running pretty much most of the time. I read somewhere that it does it all of the time so i will leave the fan out while the unit is plugged in. I may use the fan again come drawer seasoning time as you mentioned.

For some reason my pics are not attaching anymore..... I am doing exactly what I was yesterday.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

This morning 57%/58*.
I'm definitely thinking I need some shelves/drawers. From what I'm reading they help to buffer the rh once seasoned. I have a few boxes that have sticks in them, but they don't seem to help.
I have 1/2 lb of HF 65% beads in 4 small tubes throughout the cooler & a Tupperware bowl on the bottom with the rest. The tubes have dried out & the bowl is still wet!


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Yambor44 said:


> I added this RV fridge fan last night for a few hours and the RH dropped to 58%. I removed it before going to bed and it was back to 60% as posted this morning. I hear the fan on the wineador quietly running pretty much most of the time. I read somewhere that it does it all of the time so i will leave the fan out while the unit is plugged in. I may use the fan again come drawer seasoning time as you mentioned.
> 
> For some reason my pics are not attaching anymore..... I am doing exactly what I was yesterday.


I would trust the reading obtained with the fan in and running as the air is being circulated better. The fan on the cooler itself does run constantly and at different speeds but my concern is the distribution of air flow is restricted to the top of the cooler. I have two caliber IV hygrometers and noted that before putting the PC fan in the temp and RH varied by as much as 5F and 3%. After putting the PC fan in the RH reading on the top fell and the bottom rose, inversely the temp on the top rose and the bottom dropped. Leaving them be after a few hours they both settled out with identical readings. So while some will say the extra fan for air circulation isnt necessary Im a supporter of using the extra circulation.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

brimy623 said:


> This morning 57%/58*.
> I'm definitely thinking I need some shelves/drawers. From what I'm reading they help to buffer the rh once seasoned. I have a few boxes that have sticks in them, but they don't seem to help.
> I have 1/2 lb of HF 65% beads in 4 small tubes throughout the cooler & a Tupperware bowl on the bottom with the rest. The tubes have dried out & the bowl is still wet!


What that is telling me is there is more air circulation to the ones that have dried out.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> What that is telling me is there is more air circulation to the ones that have dried out.


I just read your response to Cleatus and am wondering if anyone has ever diverted the airflow from the unit other than adding the additional fans?


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Rob, good to know. I'll stick the fan back in for a bit and add some more DW to my beads.

Edit: 2pm, 61%/67º. Put the fan back in but will wait a while to see how it settles with the air movement before adding more DW.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

brimy623 said:


> I just read your response to Cleatus and am wondering if anyone has ever diverted the airflow from the unit other than adding the additional fans?


Looking at the units design diverting the airflow of the cooling unit would hamper its operation. The return air comes from all directions but because its all at the top the air exhausted is pulled back to the return before it can get to the bottom. Diverting the flow down or up will result in increasing return of the air prematurely to the cooling unit resulting in excessive cycling. That was the first thought that crossed my mind that I quickly put to bed. The second thought was in improvement of the design which I may at some point do when I get really bored over the winter. The second thought would be to remove the entire fan and shroud assembly and building a plenum so the return air comes from the bottom of the cooler and beefing up the fan just a bit.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> building a plenum so the return air comes from the bottom of the cooler and beefing up the fan just a bit.


This part of your idea is along the lines of what I'm thinking!!


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

I went out today and picked up some poplar to make the box in the bottom. Spanish cedar would have been better but this will suffice. I just got 1/4" hobby board. My Saturday schedule at Morgan Stanley cancelled so Ill probably have this made up before the weekend is out. The idea of this contraption is to pull air in, pressurize the box, then discharge the air upward through many holes to spread it out. It will also have a hinged door for maintaining the beads that will reside inside the box.

I already have an idea in mind for the plenum mentioned but I wont have all the dimensions until the drawers are in and I can get some measurements.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Sounds like a little blue RV fan for 15 bucks would be a whole lot easier! :mrgreen:


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

....oh, and just a side note and because I need to get my post count to 100... I got my drawers ordered form Forest today!!!


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Yeah I already have a 120mm fan in an aluminum housing from a Lian Li PC case that is easy but it wont accomplish what I want it to. When its all done and I post pics you will see why I went this route. If you went with the express route on your drawers make sure to post it in the "Dont order drawers from Forest" thread LOL.

No need to rush on the post count Cleatus, it will come soon enough.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Yeah I already have a 120mm fan in an aluminum housing from a Lian Li PC case that is easy but it wont accomplish what I want it to. When its all done and I post pics you will see why I went this route. *If you went with the express route on your drawers make sure to post it in the "Dont order drawers from Forest" thread LOL.*
> 
> No need to rush on the post count Cleatus, it will come soon enough.


I don't understand? What is the express route?


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Yambor44 said:


> I don't understand? What is the express route?


An extra $65 (I believe) and yours gets done before the standard orders!!


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Yep, $65 premium=yours are shipped out within 2 weeks instead of 2-3 months.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

I didn't see that option. Are you guys hazing the new guy? :smoke2:


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Absolutely Cleatus!

The option is at the bottom of the order page, last item. Rush

Please RUSH! my order
For those folks in a BIG hurry. Orders generally ship within 2 weeks.
$65.00


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Yeah, I sent Forest an email last night asking about it thinking it was a joke. Guess what? He emailed me back at 11:09 last night! What a guy! He explained to me about that option. I guess since there wasn't a pic with it I just glanced over it. 

So I sent him one back thus morning to say thanks and asked to add the dividers for two of the drawers and to charge me whatever he needed to get my order ahead of the "other Rob". Still waiting on his reply.....


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

He told me that if you wanted them ahead of the other Rob and seeing how you said charge whatever he is tagging on $300.
He is usually quick about replying but if we keep sending emails and he has to answer them thats less time building drawers. He is taking longer to reply to your last one because he is too busy building MINE!


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Hahahahaha!!


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Just got my new invoice....you're bumped! :bolt:


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Thanks for bumping me to the FRONT!


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Okay, back on topic (sorry Brian).

Received my new digital hygrometer in the mail yesterday. Calibrated it overnight as 4 hours didn't seem like enough time. Placed the unit toward the top of my wineador as the other hygro's transponder is at the bottom.

Top reading after one hour 59%/68º
Bottom reading (original) 61%/68º

Seems like she is settling in so I recharged about a third of my HF beads to get it up to 65%.

Will keep you posted. Here is a pic showing the new hygrometer.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Can anyone tell me why my pics do not load right away or not at all?

I click on the icon, click the tab for URL. Paste URL from host site, leave the box checked. 

It worked perfectly the first time I did it and now not so much. :dunno:


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Lets try this again.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

What browser are you using?
Im seeing both of them.

I noted that IE has a lot of issues in the last several months with forums so I don't use it at all anymore. I'm using Google chrome.


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## Isonj (Apr 12, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Absolutely Cleatus!
> 
> The option is at the bottom of the order page, last item. Rush
> 
> ...


Just so you guys do not get too over anxious, I paid the 65 and got mine in four weeks.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> What browser are you using?
> Im seeing both of them.
> 
> I noted that IE has a lot of issues in the last several months with forums so I don't use it at all anymore. I'm using Google chrome.


Good point. I am using Firefox. It does it on my Mac, Ipad and Windows PC. I guess I am using Safari on Ipad though.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Isonj said:


> Just so you guys do not get too over anxious, I paid the 65 and got mine in four weeks.


:boom:

I guess that would be why it reads generally ships in 2 weeks. Hopefully that extra $$$ I charged to Rob's account will get it here in 2.... layball:


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## Isonj (Apr 12, 2013)

Yambor44 said:


> :boom:
> 
> I guess that would be why it reads generally ships in 2 weeks. Hopefully that extra $$$ I charged to Rob's account will get it here in 2.... layball:


Rob is a very generous guy. The shipping takes a week because of his location. It actually goes the the west coast, to the FedEx hub before it ships to the east coast. Forrest will send you the tracking number once he ships it.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

LOL, Im afraid that if I paid a premium and it took a month I would have a hissy. He has already confirmed NLT Friday 8/9/13 which is the 2 week mark. If I remember correctly the shipping is fedex 3 day.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Well got my fan box built, it ain't pretty but its functional. Its set up so that a 120mm 75cfm fan charges the box and right into a dish of beads then the air is forced out through holes toward the front.. I didn't feel like dragging out the table saw and compound miter saw so this was all done with a coping saw. Here are some crappy phone pics.

I still have to tidy up the wiring and install a fan guard. Also going to run a thin piece of weather stripping around the base.


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## dgold21 (Jul 7, 2007)

JustinThyme said:


> LOL, Im afraid that if I paid a premium and it took a month I would have a hissy. He has already confirmed NLT Friday 8/9/13 which is the 2 week mark. If I remember correctly the shipping is fedex 3 day.


Hmm...today is the 2-week mark since I paid (rush option) and I haven't heard anything from him...


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

uht oh!


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## Signal25 (Jul 15, 2013)

Excellent..............eep:


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

LOL @ Dave, guess I had that coming....

Ill reserve judgement until my D day passes. If it does and I get no responses I already have an email bombing script written where I can send out an email to a recipient every minute until I end it.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

> Top reading after one hour 59%/68º
> Bottom reading (original) 61%/68º
> 
> Seems like she is settling in so I recharged about a third of my HF beads to get it up to 65%


So almost 24 hours after recharging my beads, my RH is 2 points on each as follows:

Top Reading 57%/68º
Bottom Reading 59%/68º

Why would it hold steady for over 24 hours then go down 2 points 24 hours after recharging the HF beads?


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Too impatient to wait for any wisdom..... :car: I decided to go ahead and pull 4 pieces (2 shelves) and wipe them down good with a clean sponge an DW.

Added back to the wineador at 9:50 am EST......


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

You opened the door, moisture escapes, temp goes up. Don't know how long you had the door open.


Whats your bead quantity? Should have a pound minimum, two pounds would be better.

If it was me I would leave the beads alone and put a sponge moistened with DW in there to get the rh up. If the beads are dry they will soak up any excess passively. 

Mine took a dive as I had it open for awhile yesterday and added the fan box that is sucking up moisture but its climbing steady. Sitting at 67*/63% ATM. Im not going to go bonkers over it until I get the drawers in there and seasoned then add sticks.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

I didn't have it open at all during that almost 24 hour period. well. once yesterday at around 2pm for a stick.

The weird thing is, that like Brian's, every time I open mine the RH goes up 3-6% depending on the length of time open, but my ambient RH in the room is much lower. ???


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## Isonj (Apr 12, 2013)

Rob -
Did you run the fan cable through the drainage hole or did you drill one out the back? Also, are you putting it on a timer? If so, how often do you run it and for how long? I have a fan ready to go from an old pc, but I do not want to drill a hole and I have already plugged the drainage hole and do not feel like pulling everything out.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Isonj said:


> Rob -
> Did you run the fan cable through the drainage hole or did you drill one out the back? Also, are you putting it on a timer? If so, how often do you run it and for how long? I have a fan ready to go from an old pc, but I do not want to drill a hole and I have already plugged the drainage hole and do not feel like pulling everything out.


I didn't drill a hole, I ran it through the drain, it was tricky, had to snip the ends off and fish the wires through one at a time by putting a small 1/4 inch kick then feeding it in with the kick pointing toward the rear fished from the inside out. Its a plumbers 90 in there so its not the easiest of tasks but it can be done. I didn't want to drill a hole in the case then plug it back up with silicone, hot glue or any other method. I didn't seal the drain either, it has yet to have anything come out of it, I have a stocking with 4oz of 70% gel taped with electrical tape up in the cavity to catch any condensate and it also gives a semi seal on the drain but not completely so if the gel gets saturated it can still drain out instead of down the inside of the cooler to the bottom.

With the way I went about building the box the static pressure keeps the airflow in check so its not blasting out the top holes, its dialed back just a bit too as I used a 10.5VDC power supply from an old Verizon router to power it. Its a nice steady soft flow distributed across the entire front half of the cooler. I don't have a timer on it now, Ill see how this pans out and go from there. I'm thinking I wont need a timer and just leave it running 24x7. Its a single 120mm 75CFM fan, high performance with ceramic bearings. This was done mostly with stuff I had laying around. The only thing I spent money on was the wood and the screws, $16 at home depot. I initially tried 2 fans but that was a bit much.

Yes I'm also a computer geek. It was initially in a PC build with water cooling and I yanked out the radiators and ran a copper tube down into my sump pit in the basement to pull out the heat. I put a relay in the PC to drive the 120VAC pump to get the water flowing from the basement up to the second floor. The PC is completely silent now with the exception of barley hearing the drives. Its a screamer too! Dual qaud core CPUs overclocked to 4Ghz and quad Nvidia graphics cards in SLI. Gamer's wet dream, although I rarely use it for that. Mostly photo processing when I'm shooting sports. Used to take me a good 1.5 hours to run a batch process with Adobe for 500 photos, now its done in 15 minutes.

If you just want to try it out without going through too much hassle I have seen more than one that just ran the wires through the front under the door seal.


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## Isonj (Apr 12, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> I didn't drill a hole, I ran it through the drain, it was tricky, had to snip the ends off and fish the wires through one at a time by putting a small 1/4 inch kick then feeding it in with the kick pointing toward the rear fished from the inside out. Its a plumbers 90 in there so its not the easiest of tasks but it can be done. I didn't want to drill a hole in the case then plug it back up with silicone, hot glue or any other method. I didn't seal the drain either, it has yet to have anything come out of it, I have a stocking with 4oz of 70% gel taped with electrical tape up in the cavity to catch any condensate and it also gives a semi seal on the drain but not completely so if the gel gets saturated it can still drain out instead of down the inside of the cooler to the bottom.
> 
> With the way I went about building the box the static pressure keeps the airflow in check so its not blasting out the top holes, its dialed back just a bit too as I used a 10.5VDC power supply from an old Verizon router to power it. Its a nice steady soft flow distributed across the entire front half of the cooler. I don't have a timer on it now, Ill see how this pans out and go from there. I'm thinking I wont need a timer and just leave it running 24x7. Its a single 120mm 75CFM fan, high performance with ceramic bearings. This was done mostly with stuff I had laying around. The only thing I spent money on was the wood and the screws, $16 at home depot. I initially tried 2 fans but that was a bit much.
> 
> ...


Cool thanks for the explanation. That's a good idea about running the cord threw the door. I will give that a try and see how it turns out.


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## dgold21 (Jul 7, 2007)

I have a flat ribbon cable that runs under the door seal, feeds a distribution box that can feed three fans...from a Hydra fan kit I used to use. Works great in this application.


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## Isonj (Apr 12, 2013)

dgold21 said:


> I have a flat ribbon cable that runs under the door seal, feeds a distribution box that can feed three fans...from a Hydra fan kit I used to use. Works great in this application.


Thanks, I will have to look into the ribbon cable since I didn't like how it fit using the adaptor that I spliced in.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> You opened the door, moisture escapes, temp goes up. Don't know how long you had the door open.
> 
> Whats your bead quantity? Should have a pound minimum, two pounds would be better.
> 
> ...


Just did this 30 mins ago. Thanks. I'm thinking once I get my drawers tomorrow I'll just put them in a cooler and season them there before adding them to the wine cooler.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Yambor44 said:


> I didn't have it open at all during that almost 24 hour period. well. once yesterday at around 2pm for a stick.
> 
> The weird thing is, that like Brian's, every time I open mine the RH goes up 3-6% depending on the length of time open, but my ambient RH in the room is much lower. ???


Think weather pattern, warm air from the outside meets cold air on the inside....


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Think weather pattern, warm air from the outside meets cold air on the inside....


Ahhhhh....makes sense! Thanks again!


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Okay, I've added a sponge with DW, soaked my beads again 100%, and this thing is hanging at 61% on the bottom and 58% on the too. Only thing I can figure is that this SC. Is si dry from being in my Florida attic for 10 years, it keeps soaking up the moisture.

Any problem leaving it like this until my drawers come in? I'm assuming they will he easier to season.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Are you sure you dont have hole in your cooler?

I watered my beads once, 60% clear, added empty boxes which I have since filled, added 30 more sticks yesterday and Im sitting at 64% ATM with an ambient of 55%.

Im going to go about seasoning my drawers bit differently than originally planned. Going to chunk them in a large cooler to season instead then move them into the wineador.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Hey Cleatus!

I'm still having my issues to get my rh stable.
But when I was first seasoning a humidor I read to take a damp sponge and wipe down the sc on the inside. 
And I have read about just putting the wet sponge/shot glass and letting the sc soak up the moisture. if you think your sc shelves are that dry, try wiping them down with the damp sponge!


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Are you sure you dont have hole in your cooler?
> 
> I watered my beads once, 60% clear, added empty boxes which I have since filled, added 30 more sticks yesterday and Im sitting at 64% ATM with an ambient of 55%.
> 
> Im going to go about seasoning my drawers bit differently than originally planned. Going to chunk them in a large cooler to season instead then move them into the wineador.


What type of boxes are you using? My boxes seem to have dried out! And they are closed with sticks inside of them. I put my hygro inside one and left it overnight and it read 50%/68*. It's an OpusX box that appears to be lacquered on the outside. I then threw a 69% Boveda pak inside and wiped the top (inside) with DW this morning and just now it read 63%/68*. And I'm still getting a lot of condensation when the unit kicks on.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Ive got a box of my father #1 that I filled up with the original content, Cusano 18 Connecticut, AF signture and a few sampler boxes that were also SC, they are all full boxes now and I chunked 30 sticks in there yesterday that are still in the shipping ziplocs but not sealed. They boxes were already seasoned somewhat, I pulled them off shelf in my garage right after a heat wave we had where temps were 95F and RH 85%. I put them in there from the onset right after getting the plastic smell out. All the sticks were already settled at 65%. I looked at my beads yesterday and they are probably about 40% clear.

The only thing I can see that is different here is everything I put in was seasoned at or above 65% in warm conditions, not with a cooler running.
How are you dealing with the condensate? If you are getting a lot then then you are either well humidified or the ambient temp is really high to where your cooler is running a lot. 
Also how much media do you have in there? Im having very little troubles with mine and reading other posts I dont recall seeing anyone else having this much of a problem getting stable.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

you're right about NOT seeing any others having a hard time getting stable! That's what has me so frustrated right now.
the ambient temp in my house is 83* right now with no AC running. That's why I decided to go the wineador route right away. Had the heat issue when trying to maintain an aquarium. Plus when I got my first humidor I saw the heat as a problem.
Right now I have a sponge catching the condensation. Considering how much there is adds even more to my frustration! With as much condensation as there is why is the rh so low??
I have 1/2 lb of 65% beads right now. 4 med tubes and the rest in a tupperware dish. But they dry out within a day or two of being 100% wet.


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## cyclontzy (Jul 30, 2013)

I got a NewAir 280, two pounds of CH beads, in two containers on the bottom, two oust fans. 5 cedar shelves. And, I can't seem to get the humidity below 75.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

cyclontzy said:


> I got a NewAir 280, two pounds of CH beads, in two containers on the bottom, two oust fans. 5 cedar shelves. And, I can't seem to get the humidity below 75.


I wish I had that problem!
How long have you had everything set up?
Are you running the cooler?


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## cyclontzy (Jul 30, 2013)

4-5 days


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Im thinking the ambient temp is whats killing you. These coolers are only capable of about 15F below ambient so you are running quite a bit and turning the humidity into condensate faster than the beads can recover it. You might want to up the beads, Ive been seeing minimums of 1lb. I have 1/2 pound in mine ATM but 2 pounds inbound. I putting 1 lb in the bottom, 1/2 pound in front of the cooling unit, a small stocking in the pocket for condensate and distributing the rest as needed after I get everything in there and see what is lacking where. 

Where is the condensate going?

The biggest difference between your set up and mine is ambient temp. I stay at 75F in the house most of the time. Hottest part of the summer it will get up to the 78 that the day setting is on the Tstat but days like today it didnt get past 76F


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

cyclontzy said:


> 4-5 days


From what I've read of other builds, you probably just need to give the beads time to absorb some of the RH and it will drop.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Im thinking the ambient temp is whats killing you. These coolers are only capable of about 15F below ambient so you are running quite a bit and turning the humidity into condensate faster than the beads can recover it. You might want to up the beads, Ive been seeing minimums of 1lb. I have 1/2 pound in mine ATM but 2 pounds inbound. I putting 1 lb in the bottom, 1/2 pound in front of the cooling unit, a small stocking in the pocket for condensate and distributing the rest as needed after I get everything in there and see what is lacking where.
> 
> Where is the condensate going?
> 
> The biggest difference between your set up and mine is ambient temp. I stay at 75F in the house most of the time. Hottest part of the summer it will get up to the 78 that the day setting is on the Tstat but days like today it didnt get past 76F


Maybe I'm not understanding something about the beads!
Shouldn't they absorb the condensate as opposed to drying out?
Wouldn't adding more beads result in the same low rh if what's there now continually dries out?


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Where is your condensate going?

I think the problem is your cooling is running far too much. The cooling is pulling moisture out faster than the beads can keep up with it and with the rh steadily getting pulled lower than 65% the beads are dumping. What Im not getting is where is all the condensate going?

Im not sure what ambient others are running at, mayeb they can chime in.

Like I said I stay near 75F/55%RH ambient and my winedor is staying 66F/66% so long as I stay out of it and ont add anything. Its up to 67% ATM but Im more than sure that is from the 30 sticks I just got in that I put in it and expect that will be down in less than 24hrs.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

I have a sponge by the drain soaking up the condensation thinking it would be like putting a sponge with DW to sit in there.
I have the temp set at 64* (the highest it can go) & I have the cooler in the coolest spot away from any windows!
Gonna try a different spot. But will have to move it come winter because it will be near a radiator. I will also look into post I've seen about changing the tstat to go to a higher temp.
And if I do that, maybe I should look into a bigger unit!


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

I keep forgetting you have the Avanti. The Newair highest setting is 66. Others have reported it staying up around 68 but mine seems to like exactly what its set at. It stays around 66 +/- a degree when it cycles.

You might want to swap out that sponge for humidification media. I have 4oz of 70% gel in stocking in mine ATM


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Well, with my ambient temp staying so high maybe the tstat change may help. I'll look into it in he morning & see if its worth it!


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

If you can get it up it will definitely help.


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## dgold21 (Jul 7, 2007)

JustinThyme said:


> If you can get it up it will definitely help.


That's what she said :drum:


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## Signal25 (Jul 15, 2013)

I have an Avanti 18 and just set the upper and lower temps as high as they will go. Only varies a few degrees throughout the day.
RH stays anywhere from 65% to 68%, upper vs lower. 
Im using 4 boxes I got at the B&M until my drawers come in.
And probably 1/2 a jug of KL in fish tank bags. 
Granted it only been going a few days, but I am happy with it so far.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Are you sure you dont have hole in your cooler?
> 
> I watered my beads once, 60% clear, added empty boxes which I have since filled, added 30 more sticks yesterday and Im sitting at 64% ATM with an ambient of 55%.
> 
> Im going to go about seasoning my drawers bit differently than originally planned. Going to chunk them in a large cooler to season instead then move them into the wineador.


The only hole I know of if the drain hole at the bottom which I have sealed with duct tape. Also, all of my sticks in there came out of 67% RH humidor except for on box of Diesel Unholy Cocktail.



brimy623 said:


> Hey Cleatus!
> 
> I'm still having my issues to get my rh stable.
> But when I was first seasoning a humidor I read to take a damp sponge and wipe down the sc on the inside.
> And I have read about just putting the wet sponge/shot glass and letting the sc soak up the moisture. if you think your sc shelves are that dry, try wiping them down with the damp sponge!


I have taken my cedar shelves out twice now and wiped them with a damp/wet sponge of DW. I put them back in almosting dripping and within 24 hours they are dry looking. I think it's due to the cedar sitting in my Florida attic for 10+ years! 



brimy623 said:


> Well, with my ambient temp staying so high maybe the tstat change may help. I'll look into it in he morning & see if its worth it!


Brian, maybe you should put a fan in the room blowing towards your wineador??


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Don't know that a fan will help. 83* ambient will still be 83* even if the air is moving and air movement acting by convection may actually make the internal temp rise faster causing the cooling to run even more.


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## Tag9485 (Apr 16, 2013)

Signal25 said:


> I have an Avanti 18 and just set the upper and lower temps as high as they will go. Only varies a few degrees throughout the day.
> RH stays anywhere from 65% to 68%, upper vs lower.
> Im using 4 boxes I got at the B&M until my drawers come in.
> And probably 1/2 a jug of KL in fish tank bags.
> Granted it only been going a few days, but I am happy with it so far.


I have a NewAir 18 and had a few boxes and my sticks in there after the RH stayed around 70 for a few days. Ran it like that with the temp on the highest setting for about 6 months while I waited for my drawers. Stayed about 66 deg and 69 RH the whole time. Got the drawers in and began seasoning. Had to turn off the unit bc it actually drives the RH way up. It's been a total nightmare trying to get the RH to drop. I mean I pulled out all the sponges I had been using to season ànd through a ton of KL in there and the best I've been able to get is 73%. Just thought I'd share the pain it's been for me.


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## Signal25 (Jul 15, 2013)

Tag9485 said:


> I have a NewAir 18 and had a few boxes and my sticks in there after the RH stayed around 70 for a few days. Ran it like that with the temp on the highest setting for about 6 months while I waited for my drawers. Stayed about 66 deg and 69 RH the whole time. Got the drawers in and began seasoning. Had to turn off the unit bc it actually drives the RH way up. It's been a total nightmare trying to get the RH to drop. I mean I pulled out all the sponges I had been using to season ànd through a ton of KL in there and the best I've been able to get is 73%. Just thought I'd share the pain it's been for me.


Luckily I haven't ran into that yet.
Have you tried drying out the KL?
Open the door for an hour or so, let the RH drop and then close it up.
Leave the sponges, etc out. Just wood, and KL.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Don't know that a fan will help. 83* ambient will still be 83* even if the air is moving and air movement acting by convection may actually make the internal temp rise faster causing the cooling to run even more.


Have to figure something out!!:mmph:
Moved the unit earlier this afternoon to a different location. It seems like it's not running as much as before, but the ambient is still HIGH!! Put the hygro on top of the unit and it's reading 69%/84*.
Gonna throw the hygro back inside and see what it reads and check the condensation.
will keep you folks posted!!


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

I hope you can figure something out.
I dont know how you deal with 84* inside.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> I hope you can figure something out.
> I dont know how you deal with 84* inside.


I know!
If I run the AC all the time, I won't be able to afford any sticks to keep cool!!

I'm going to look into freezing then I won't have to worry about the temp.
Maybe I can get a stable rh if I don't run the cooling.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Yeah the humidity will be stable but the temp will skyrocket. 
I feel your pain brother, been there and done that! Burned the Tshirt.....
Unless you can get that differential temperature down the constantly running state will continue to rob you of humidity. In your case I would actually go against the grain and consider one of two things. Raise the operating temperature to 70* or go with an active humidifer and beads to catch the condensate. Even a 5* close in the gap between ambient and operating would do a world of good. 15* differential or less is where you want to be.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Yeah the humidity will be stable but the temp will skyrocket.
> I feel your pain brother, been there and done that! Burned the Tshirt.....
> Unless you can get that differential temperature down the constantly running state will continue to rob you of humidity. In your case I would actually go against the grain and consider one of two things. Raise the operating temperature to 70* or go with an active humidifer and beads to catch the condensate. Even a 5* close in the gap between ambient and operating would do a world of good. 15* differential or less is where you want to be.


Thx Rob!
I'll figure something out.
In the mean time, let me go enjoy a stick & relax!


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Just had a brainstorm!!!
What if I put an ice pak inside to help keep the temp down inside the unit?
Gonna give it a shot. Got nothing to lose!!


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## Signal25 (Jul 15, 2013)

brimy623 said:


> Just had a brainstorm!!!
> What if I put an ice pak inside to help keep the temp down inside the unit?
> Gonna give it a shot. Got nothing to lose!!


Worth a shot...


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

brimy623 said:


> Just had a brainstorm!!!
> What if I put an ice pak inside to help keep the temp down inside the unit?
> Gonna give it a shot. Got nothing to lose!!


Or an Ice pack for the back of your neck while you enjoy a stick.

Keep in mind that an ice pack is going to draw condensation too, more so than the peltier because its even colder.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Okay after reading Rob's advice to Brian regarding the unit sucking out RH when running, I am on the right track.

My room stays at about 76F on average. My wine cooler was set at 60F in order to hold the cooler at 67F (I read somewhere that CC's preferred this lower temp along with lower RH). Last night I bumped the cooler up to 62F on the display. This morning my readouts were: 62%/68F bottom and 59%/68F top. So I bumped the cooler set display to 64F (max). 5 hours later it is reading 64%/69F bottom and 60%/68F top. Heading in the right direction!


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Sounds good. Didnt know you had it set on 60*. The Tsats are often off but if its set lower than it can effectively maintain temp with a minimal amount of run time its just going to keep trying to meet that 60*F and never cycle off. My wife keeps a TEC refrigerator under her desk at work to store drinks in with a lock on it (people kept stealing them out of the communal fridge, as well as lunches!) and from what I can gather they only go down so far, not nearly as cold as a compressor type will get. Her drinks are not nearly as cold but doable and at least she has them instead of them resting on the bottom of some thieving lowlifes belly.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Yambor44 said:


> Okay after reading Rob's advice to Brian regarding the unit sucking out RH when running, I am on the right track.
> 
> My room stays at about 76F on average. My wine cooler was set at 60F in order to hold the cooler at 67F (I read somewhere that CC's preferred this lower temp along with lower RH). Last night I bumped the cooler up to 62F on the display. This morning my readouts were: 62%/68F bottom and 59%/68F top. So I bumped the cooler set display to 64F (max). 5 hours later it is reading 64%/69F bottom and 60%/68F top. Heading in the right direction!


Glad to hear it's working out for you!!
Unfortunately, my "brainstorm" turned out to be a "brain fart"!
Checked my hygro this morning and it was reading 48%/68*. It's beginning to look like I'm going to have to bite the bullet for a while and run the AC until the weather starts to cool down! Like Rob said, with an ambient of 83* the unit is going to run fairly often. And my heat situation is the same throughout the house. Gonna run the AC for a bit now to see what happens while I'm home.
Basement is finished and rented out so I can't even look to put it down there and build a man cave! 
AAAAAARGH!! Woe's me!
I'll figure something out.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Well, you can make an amendment to the lease and give the Tenant a monthly credit for your wineador to sit in the corner?

Dont know what your floor plan is but I do remember back in the day when I was a struggling young man that couldnt take the heat and couldnt afford to run the AC I picked up a small window unit, put it in the bedroom then kept that room closed off and set the AC to keep it around 77*. It was a big difference energy wise over that one room and the entire apt I was in at the time. I also draped heavy blankets over the windows for insulation. At that time I was living in the extreme southern part of SC and mid summer days were never cooler than 95*. Cold front passing though might drop it to 90* for a short time. I remember one July there where it never dipped below 100* for the entire month with 90%RH. Talk about just plain miserable! Heat indexes upward of 120*. Then night would fall and we would get relief back into the mid 90s LOL.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Well, you can make an amendment to the lease and give the Tenant a monthly credit for your wineador to sit in the corner?
> 
> Dont know what your floor plan is but I do remember back in the day when I was a struggling young man that couldnt take the heat and couldnt afford to run the AC I picked up a small window unit, put it in the bedroom then kept that room closed off and set the AC to keep it around 77*. It was a big difference energy wise over that one room and the entire apt I was in at the time. I also draped heavy blankets over the windows for insulation. At that time I was living in the extreme southern part of SC and mid summer days were never cooler than 95*. Cold front passing though might drop it to 90* for a short time. I remember one July there where it never dipped below 100* for the entire month with 90%RH. Talk about just plain miserable! Heat indexes upward of 120*. Then night would fall and we would get relief back into the mid 90s LOL.


LOL
Those MUST have been some truly miserable days!
Have the AC on and the unit has dropped to 63* (have it set for 64*). Gonna see how it plays out for the rest of the day. Check my ambient and then decide if I'm going bite the bullet to leave it running.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Just had another "brainstorm"!
Reading past threads where others were looking to use active humidification in their builds and were told it would provide too much RH, maybe this will get and keep mine up to the 65% that I'm looking for?! Especially with the unit cooling and sucking up the RH!!! Then when the weather cools off I can just remove it!
What do you guys think?


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

In your case it may help, my concern would be all the condensate. It will be pumping it out as fast as it pumps it in and instead of wetting your beads you will be adding water almost as often to an active humidifier. Im afraid it will still be an endless cycle of water movement and nothing staying really stable so your sticks can benefit from it.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> In your case it may help, my concern would be all the condensate. It will be pumping it out as fast as it pumps it in and instead of wetting your beads you will be adding water almost as often to an active humidifier. Im afraid it will still be an endless cycle of water movement and nothing staying really stable so your sticks can benefit from it.


makes sense.
Oh well, back to the drawing board.

After a couple of hours with the AC on ambient down to 65%/79*; unit reading 65*. So it's probably on trying to get down to 64*.
Frustrating right now!


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

As you mentioned, worse case scenario you could freeze your sticks when they come in then you wouldn't have to worry about temp and keep your Rh in the low 60's.


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## cyclontzy (Jul 30, 2013)

I still can't seem to get my humd down below 75, mine floats around 75-78. anybody have any fixes?


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Yambor44 said:


> As you mentioned, worse case scenario you could freeze your sticks when they come in then you wouldn't have to worry about temp and keep your Rh in the low 60's.


True!
It would save the cost of the AC running all of the time!



cyclontzy said:


> I still can't seem to get my humd down below 75, mine floats around 75-78. anybody have any fixes?


Sorry, dont remember. Are you running the cooling on the unit?
If so, what temp do you have it at?
As Rob (JustinThyme) explained, the lower the temp the more Rh you are going to lose.
Also stated either earlier are in another post, try drying out your beads/kl and leave the door open for a little while.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

cyclontzy said:


> I got a NewAir 280, two pounds of CH beads, in two containers on the bottom, two oust fans. 5 cedar shelves. And, I can't seem to get the humidity below 75.


Take your beads out and one of the fans and let it sit for 24 hours.


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## boro62 (Jan 21, 2013)

hey guys, new guy here, been lurking for awhile but figured I'd post since I'm having the similar issues to brian. So i'm running a newaire 281e with drawers from forest, about 4 lbs of heartfelt 70 rh beads (ya i know way overkill but at one point i was hoping it would fix things). I have 2x200mm fans wired in it wired to a RF remote so I can turn them on and off without having to opening the wine cooler. I had to drill a hole to power the fans and the rf transmitter and sealed that up along with the drainplug with some aquarium sealant (the ones that stink of vinegar). Anyways I've been running this setup for about 6 months now. 

The biggest problem I've always had is condensation. It is about 85 degrees ambient temp in my house. If I don't run the cooling the rh is nice and steady from 68-72 depending on what part of the wineador your looking at. But the temp inside the wineador shoots up to almost 90 degrees. When I do turn on the cooling the rh drops to about 50 and huge puddles of water form at the bottom from condensation. I actually have to rotate 1lb bag of beads to where the water collects and still wipe out a bunch of excess water. I've been doing this for a few months now, and its getting pretty obnoxious and I still can't figure out a solution. 

Anyways just thought I'd share my frustrations with you guys.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

boro62 said:


> hey guys, new guy here, been lurking for awhile but figured I'd post since I'm having the similar issues to brian. So i'm running a newaire 281e with drawers from forest, about 4 lbs of heartfelt 70 rh beads (ya i know way overkill but at one point i was hoping it would fix things). I have 2x200mm fans wired in it wired to a RF remote so I can turn them on and off without having to opening the wine cooler. I had to drill a hole to power the fans and the rf transmitter and sealed that up along with the drainplug with some aquarium sealant (the ones that stink of vinegar). Anyways I've been running this setup for about 6 months now.
> 
> The biggest problem I've always had is condensation. It is about 85 degrees ambient temp in my house. If I don't run the cooling the rh is nice and steady from 68-72 depending on what part of the wineador your looking at. But the temp inside the wineador shoots up to almost 90 degrees. When I do turn on the cooling the rh drops to about 50 and huge puddles of water form at the bottom from condensation. I actually have to rotate 1lb bag of beads to where the water collects and still wipe out a bunch of excess water. I've been doing this for a few months now, and its getting pretty obnoxious and I still can't figure out a solution.
> 
> Anyways just thought I'd share my frustrations with you guys.


I understand your frustrations completely!!! Although it's only been about a month and a half, maybe two months for me.
I just thought about this. If our drains were NOT plugged the condensation would have somewhere to go! But would that affect the Rh? I've read other post where some BOTL DON'T have their drains plugged and aren't experiencing any problems.
But then again as Rob stated, the sticks would be in an unstable environment.
I'm going to start a thread looking for the experiences of S/BOTL who freeze their sticks. To get their opinion/experiences about the high temp in a stable Rh environment.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

boro62 said:


> hey guys, new guy here, been lurking for awhile but figured I'd post since I'm having the similar issues to brian. So i'm running a newaire 281e with drawers from forest, about 4 lbs of heartfelt 70 rh beads (ya i know way overkill but at one point i was hoping it would fix things). I have 2x200mm fans wired in it wired to a RF remote so I can turn them on and off without having to opening the wine cooler. I had to drill a hole to power the fans and the rf transmitter and sealed that up along with the drainplug with some aquarium sealant (the ones that stink of vinegar). Anyways I've been running this setup for about 6 months now.
> 
> The biggest problem I've always had is condensation. It is about 85 degrees ambient temp in my house. If I don't run the cooling the rh is nice and steady from 68-72 depending on what part of the wineador your looking at. But the temp inside the wineador shoots up to almost 90 degrees. When I do turn on the cooling the rh drops to about 50 and huge puddles of water form at the bottom from condensation. I actually have to rotate 1lb bag of beads to where the water collects and still wipe out a bunch of excess water. I've been doing this for a few months now, and its getting pretty obnoxious and I still can't figure out a solution.
> 
> Anyways just thought I'd share my frustrations with you guys.


Its the ambient temp that is killing you, your cooling is running too much, same issue that Brian is having. The coolers state in the packaging that they are meant to be run in a house and not a garage etc. Its referring to ambient temps as most households are kept between 75-78 degrees and garages can get extremely hot.

Brian unplugging the drain wont really matter one way or the other. The condensation will run out the back but what you are experiencing now is the fact that it never gets a chance to get the moisture back in the air.



cyclontzy said:


> I still can't seem to get my humd down below 75, mine floats around 75-78. anybody have any fixes?


If you are running beads and have a sufficient amount pull them out and dry them. Ive heard of some putting them in the oven at like 200* for 30 minutes or so. Me, I dump them in a bowl and take my wifes hair dryer to them until I see them turn opaque. Just make sure you dont blast them with too much air or you will be chasing beads for days and dot get overzealous on the heat. Last time I did it the entire evolution took about 15 minutes.


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## boro62 (Jan 21, 2013)

brimy623 said:


> I understand your frustrations completely!!! Although it's only been about a month and a half, maybe two months for me.
> I just thought about this. If our drains were NOT plugged the condensation would have somewhere to go! But would that affect the Rh? I've read other post where some BOTL DON'T have their drains plugged and aren't experiencing any problems.
> But then again as Rob stated, the sticks would be in an unstable environment.
> I'm going to start a thread looking for the experiences of S/BOTL who freeze their sticks. To get their opinion/experiences about the high temp in a stable Rh environment.


I had the same problems with and without the drain plug plugged. The only difference was the puddles of water ended up on my floor instead of inside at the bottom of the wineador lolz.

ya I have no idea what I'm going to do. Maybe its time for an aristocrat humidor with temp/rh built in.


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## boro62 (Jan 21, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> If you are running beads and have a sufficient amount pull them out and dry them. Ive heard of some putting them in the oven at like 200* for 30 minutes or so. Me, I dump them in a bowl and take my wifes hair dryer to them until I see them turn opaque. Just make sure you dont blast them with too much air or you will be chasing beads for days and dot get overzealous on the heat. Last time I did it the entire evolution took about 15 minutes.


yup I use a hairdryer also if i need to dry out some beads. Works great.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

boro62 said:


> I had the same problems with and without the drain plug plugged. The only difference was the puddles of water ended up on my floor instead of inside at the bottom of the wineador lolz.
> 
> ya I have no idea what I'm going to do. Maybe its time for an aristocrat humidor with temp/rh built in.


You will have the same issues with an aristocrat.

I havent touched mine for a few days, no drawers in it yet but there are several boxes and a tupperware bin full of sticks. around 150 sticks in it.
I have two pounds of HF beads, the fan box I built with a single 120mm fan with 1 pound of beads in the bottom in the box and two bags of 1/2 pound each one midway and one at the top.
I have added no water since the initial charge, my drain isnt plugged but I do have 4oz of 70% gel in a stocking to catch any condensate and pump it right back in. My cooling doesnt cycle on much at all.

Ambient is 75*/55%rh
inside the cooler the top hygro is reading 66*/66%rh bottom reading 66.5*/66%rh. I do note that when the cooling kicks in that the top will cool more as expected due to location of the cooling unit and the rh will drop by 1-2% on both then rebound right back within minutes of the cooling cutting off.


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## boro62 (Jan 21, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> You will have the same issues with an aristocrat.
> 
> I havent touched mine for a few days, no drawers in it yet but there are several boxes and a tupperware bin full of sticks. around 150 sticks in it.
> I have two pounds of HF beads, the fan box I built with a single 120mm fan with 1 pound of beads in the bottom in the box and two bags of 1/2 pound each one midway and one at the top.
> ...


So it almost seems like the only REAL way to fix things is to lower the ambient temp. in my house. I guess If i knew this when I was starting I would have just got a regular humidor. I never thought that having an active cooling would end up causing this much headaches.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

boro62 said:


> So it almost seems like the only REAL way to fix things is to lower the ambient temp. in my house. I guess If i knew this when I was starting I would have just got a regular humidor. I never thought that having an active cooling would end up causing this much headaches.


I don't know what we're doing wrong, but it's doable.
another BOTL in LA says he's running two 12 bottles and his ambient is between 80-90.
says he has 1 1/2 - 2lb of beads/KL. gonna send him a PM to see his exact setup.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Yeah I read his post. He is maintaining 75* in the cooler vs 64 for a much lower differential. If you were able to raise your temp set point to the same and get more beads your worries would be over as far as rh goes but not the temp of under 70.
Personally i went the wineador route to get the ambient temp of the sticks under 70*. I also knew on the front end about the dynamics of rh and temps and that my cooling wouldn't run long with 10* or less of differential.

You guys are about to make me break out in a sweat just thinking about sitting in a house where its in the mid 80s or higher.

I'm trying to figure out high temps in southern Ca unless its Death Valley. Ive spent a good bit of time in Costa Mesa that is just south of LA and during the summer its stayed around 75* outside. There was the occasional Santa Ana wind that would run it up into the low 80s but never saw even close to 90. I know plenty of folks out there that go with AC because even with my intolerance the outside ambient is comfortable and dips to the mid 60s at night.


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## boro62 (Jan 21, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Yeah I read his post. He is maintaining 75* in the cooler vs 64 for a much lower differential. If you were able to raise your temp set point to the same and get more beads your worries would be over as far as rh goes but not the temp of under 70.
> Personally i went the wineador route to get the ambient temp of the sticks under 70*. I also knew on the front end about the dynamics of rh and temps and that my cooling wouldn't run long with 10* or less of differential.
> 
> You guys are about to make me break out in a sweat just thinking about sitting in a house where its in the mid 80s or higher.
> ...


I actually keep my cooling set at 66 which is the highest it will go. I about 65 miles east of the coast. Last month we were almost always between 95-105. Its cooled down recently and we are now in the high 80's to low 90s. If I run my AC constantly I can count on a $150 spike in my electricity bill a month, which is why I really did not want to go that route.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

I'm going to find out if he modified his unit or what brand! 74* sounds high to maintain. As I've said I can only set mine as high as 64 and the highest that I've seen on the the unit is 66* and on the hygro is 69*.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

boro62 said:


> I actually keep my cooling set at 66 which is the highest it will go. I about 65 miles east of the coast. Last month we were almost always between 95-105. Its cooled down recently and we are now in the high 80's to low 90s. If I run my AC constantly I can count on a $150 spike in my electricity bill a month, which is why I really did not want to go that route.


 I hear ya there brother. You dont want my utility bill that averages about $500/month. Electricity in the summer and gas in the winter. In the grand scheme of things though thats just a drop in the bucket to living here. Real estate is through the roof as are taxes and every corner you turn is someone else holding their hand out for money. Most major roads are toll roads then when they need work they jack the tolls. If you want to go to the beach you have to pay $30 to park then pay $10 again per person to walk across a boardwalk to get to the beach! I have a 3500 sqft house that is paid for in SC that is on deep water with a dock and in ground pool and 5 acres of land. Its valued at $700K and the taxes are $1600/year. Here the house is 3000 sqft, the land is 100x200 with a $750K price tag and the freakin taxes are $12K/year! Same house in the south would go for around $200K and the taxes would be like $500/year. I count the days until my kids are grown and I can retire back down south.


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## boro62 (Jan 21, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> I hear ya there brother. You dont want my utility bill that averages about $500/month. Electricity in the summer and gas in the winter. In the grand scheme of things though thats just a drop in the bucket to living here. Real estate is through the roof as are taxes and every corner you turn is someone else holding their hand out for money. Most major roads are toll roads then when they need work they jack the tolls. If you want to go to the beach you have to pay $30 to park then pay $10 again per person to walk across a boardwalk to get to the beach! I have a 3500 sqft house that is paid for in SC that is on deep water with a dock and in ground pool and 5 acres of land. Its valued at $700K and the taxes are $1600/year. Here the house is 3000 sqft, the land is 100x200 with a $750K price tag and the freakin taxes are $12K/year! Same house in the south would go for around $200K and the taxes would be like $500/year. I count the days until my kids are grown and I can retire back down south.


yea taxes in california are a little better than NJ, but still pretty outrageous when compared to the rest of the country. I can't wait for the day that I can retire and get the hell out of this state too. Also the smoking and gun laws are so horrendous here in CA too. I really hate this state sometimes.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Property there isnt exactly cheap either. Have a friend who has lived in Huntington Beach for most of his life, serious surfer! Had me out once and man was that a hilarious venture for him! I wasnt laughing very much.
He bought his house there many moons ago. Its a very small 2br probably 1200 sq ft and a yard that requires no more than a weed eater to cut grass. That house is his sole retirement venture after he lost his butt in the dot com crash. He paid $45K for it when he bought it and its now valued at nearly $700K.
There are plenty of uppity folks there though. How about flying into Orange County airport? Have to come in and take off at a very steep angle just so you don't disturb those in Newport Beach and all flights are cut off past 10PM because noise carries further at night and the same folks cant be bothered. My take on it? Don't want noise don't buy a house in the flight path of an airport. Was on a flight that got diverted to LAX because the flight was 10 minutes behind schedule. Then a bus where they dropped us off at an empty and closed down airport with no way out. Lucky for me I still had a cab company stored in my phone! The hard part was beating off the rest of the people when my cab showed up. I imagine they had more coming because I told them there were a lot of people needing a ride and he had better send his buddies too. Dont know for sure, I was too busy getting out of there and to the hotel.


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## boro62 (Jan 21, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Property there isnt exactly cheap either. Have a friend who has lived in Huntington Beach for most of his life, serious surfer! Had me out once and man was that a hilarious venture for him! I wasnt laughing very much.
> He bought his house there many moons ago. Its a very small 2br probably 1200 sq ft and a yard that requires no more than a weed eater to cut grass. That house is his sole retirement venture after he lost his butt in the dot com crash. He paid $45K for it when he bought it and its now valued at nearly $700K.
> There are plenty of uppity folks there though. How about flying into Orange County airport? Have to come in and take off at a very steep angle just so you don't disturb those in Newport Beach and all flights are cut off past 10PM because noise carries further at night and the same folks cant be bothered. My take on it? Don't want noise don't buy a house in the flight path of an airport. Was on a flight that got diverted to LAX because the flight was 10 minutes behind schedule. Then a bus where they dropped us off at an empty and closed down airport with no way out. Lucky for me I still had a cab company stored in my phone! The hard part was beating off the rest of the people when my cab showed up. I imagine they had more coming because I told them there were a lot of people needing a ride and he had better send his buddies too. Dont know for sure, I was too busy getting out of there and to the hotel.


LOL funny thing, I've had similar horror stories about newark airport. I've been stuck there so many times because of weather that i make it a point now not to fly to the east coast during the snow months. And if I do have to, there is no way I would ever take a flight that has to go through chicago o'hare. chicago ohare has to be the absolute worst airport in the winter months.

I generally stay out of OC, if I fly its either out of LAX because there are more flights that go out from there, but I prefer to fly in and out of Ontario since its the closest to me. Long beach airport is actually pretty nice now, they re-did the whole airport. where before it was beyond ghetto.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

If you were stuck in Newark over weather then JFK or Laguardia and Philly was even worse. 
Im with you on Ohare, I dont care if I have to fly 3 more stops through other airports I avoid O'hare like the plague. The story above was a result of going through O'hare and getting a rain delay for 6 hours. I didnt mention that when I got to the other end I had no bags. After a 6 hour delay my bags didnt make it on the plane because they were out on the tarmac getting rained on. When they showed up two days later the entire contents of the bags was soaked! I fly from Newark to OC quite often. There is a direct flight that runs twice a day. My problems with that is its expensive. Last trip a flight through O'hare was like $400 round trip and the direct flight $1200 and its always full with people on standby. Im not paying the bill but I catch flack from accounts payable for not taking the most economic solution. The only reason I use OC is its location to where I do business out there. Its less than 10 minutes from the hotel I stay in where LAX is 1.5 hours away not including traffic that can turn that trip into 4 hours easy.


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## cyclontzy (Jul 30, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> I hear ya there brother. You dont want my utility bill that averages about $500/month. Electricity in the summer and gas in the winter. In the grand scheme of things though thats just a drop in the bucket to living here. Real estate is through the roof as are taxes and every corner you turn is someone else holding their hand out for money. Most major roads are toll roads then when they need work they jack the tolls. If you want to go to the beach you have to pay $30 to park then pay $10 again per person to walk across a boardwalk to get to the beach! I have a 3500 sqft house that is paid for in SC that is on deep water with a dock and in ground pool and 5 acres of land. Its valued at $700K and the taxes are $1600/year. Here the house is 3000 sqft, the land is 100x200 with a $750K price tag and the freakin taxes are $12K/year! Same house in the south would go for around $200K and the taxes would be like $500/year. I count the days until my kids are grown and I can retire back down south.


Tell me about it, and then they wonder why small business is failing. I pulled my beads and drying them out hopefully that does the trick.


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## boro62 (Jan 21, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> If you were stuck in Newark over weather then JFK or Laguardia and Philly was even worse.
> Im with you on Ohare, I dont care if I have to fly 3 more stops through other airports I avoid O'hare like the plague. The story above was a result of going through O'hare and getting a rain delay for 6 hours. I didnt mention that when I got to the other end I had no bags. After a 6 hour delay my bags didnt make it on the plane because they were out on the tarmac getting rained on. When they showed up two days later the entire contents of the bags was soaked! I fly from Newark to OC quite often. There is a direct flight that runs twice a day. My problems with that is its expensive. Last trip a flight through O'hare was like $400 round trip and the direct flight $1200 and its always full with people on standby. Im not paying the bill but I catch flack from accounts payable for not taking the most economic solution. The only reason I use OC is its location to where I do business out there. Its less than 10 minutes from the hotel I stay in where LAX is 1.5 hours away not including traffic that can turn that trip into 4 hours easy.


lol yea, travelling in the greater los angeles area can be horrible. but you get used to it. Taking 45 min one way to get anywhere is pretty normal for me. My normal morning commute is about 35 min each way. I figure traffic down here is just as bad as it is out over by you though isn't it? Your lucky you got your bags at all! They tend to just straight up lose it for 3-4 days for me. Thats why I stopped checking in bags, I just learned to pack light and do carry ons. Also almost all airlines now charge a fee to check in a bag.

We really should stop thread jacking this thread lolz



cyclontzy said:


> Tell me about it, and then they wonder why small business is failing. I pulled my beads and drying them out hopefully that does the trick.


Let us know how it goes!


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## cyclontzy (Jul 30, 2013)

I'm still having issues can't seem to get it stabilized, humidity is a lot higher at the top then the bottom, the bottom usually floats around 70-73, top floats around 75-78. Will lowering the temp get it stabilized?


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## boro62 (Jan 21, 2013)

cyclontzy said:


> I'm still having issues can't seem to get it stabilized, humidity is a lot higher at the top then the bottom, the bottom usually floats around 70-73, top floats around 75-78. Will lowering the temp get it stabilized?


I've noticed in general that my bottom is always lower rh than the top. Adding some fans for circulation helped even it out a bit. what are you using for humidification?


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## cyclontzy (Jul 30, 2013)

two pounds CH beads, two tubberware containers on bottom with a oust fan in between, and then oust fan on top pointed down.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

It's been a little cooler here & my ambient has dropped to 78*!
When my unit is not running I'm holding a steady range of Rh between 64-66. When the unit kicks on it drops to 58-60. And since the ambient is down it hasn't had to cool as much. Haven't checked the condensation in two days.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Yes Very nice in this neck of the woods too. I actually opened all my windows today and shut the air down. High of 76 and 69 ATM. I still have been having no issues with mine in the least. Havent done anything but put more sticks in it. My last order for awhile processed yesterday. I'm knee deep in stogies, enough to go for several months before ordering anymore to put to the back of the rotation.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

I did the same with the windows!
Still waiting on some more HF 65% beads. Some were recommending kitty litter in the other thread. I don't really want to mix methods.
Sent to Forrest to get an estimate on drawers but haven't gotten a response. Read in another thread that he had a DIF & is backed up anyway! Even with the rush orders. So I guess I just have to wait. I sent my specs to chasidor.com a while ago with no response. And as I stated before, something gives me the feeling that the SC is going to help. I still think its weird that I'm having these issues. Aside form Boro62 I haven't hear of anyone else having this issue.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Im sticking with the beads for now, already spent the $$ so may as well put them to work. I went overkill with 2 lbs + whatever was left over from filling my desktops out of the last 1lb bag. It goes up a little when I add fresh stock, just put a box of Oliva Melanios, Oliva V sampler, and another 30 or so loose sticks in there today and yanked everything else out long enough to date everything. Got up to go look while typing this and Im at 66.4*/66%. I snagged one of teh wifeys tupperware containers that just happens to stretch the entire width of the cooler and about 3/4 deep and slides right in the shelf slots. She has one more that is probably going to go MIA too here really soon, i manged to get about 75 sticks in the first one LOL!

Im more than sure that things are going to change once I get drawers in it and will have to play the airflow game but Im one up on it already with the fan box. I purposely didnt order my drawers vented, not to save the $$ because I went for a nice hardwood upgrade, but to be able to put the holes where I want them to be able to direct flow as a whole within. I cant really go too much further until I have the drawers in hand. I paid the extra for a rush order but the promised ship date came and went, looks like Forrest has other things to deal with ATM and hopefully gets back into production soon. Im really anxious to get it settled and not one that is patient on purchases. Once I commit I want it NOW! 

I may at some point in the next day or two just bite the bullet and transfer as much stock as I can in the wifeys tupperware until my drawers get here. Having already stocked it as much as I have I am going to season the drawers in a cooler in the garage so I dont subject the sticks to more temp swings by taking them out to season drawers. The extra heat in the garage should hasten the seasoning process. Then just put them in one at a time over a day or two.


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## boro62 (Jan 21, 2013)

I've been stilling having similar issues....when the cooling kicks on it drops to like 55 rh. When it's off it gets up to about 62rh. I wonder if better insulation would help with the condensation issue.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Still having the same issues as well!!
The only solution seems to be putting the unit in an AC room to regulate the ambient temp so that the unit won't have to work as much and therefore eliminate or at least reduce the condensation!


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

THey Rob,
I see that you're still waiting on your drawers. Have you heard from Forrest? I sent an email requesting a quote and haven't heard from him. I heard he had a death in the family but thought he might be back.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

You are getting closer Boris. I woudnt pay too much attention to what its at when the cooling is running, its always going to be lower. 62 is around where a lot of folks prefer their sticks.
Have you tried to get the temp up a bit so it doesnt run so much? 

Mine has settled to a stable 66*/65%rh.
Every now and then I will peak in and see the rh drop a point or two while the cooling is running but its always short lived. Temp drops to 64 before it shuts off. In less than 5 minutes its right back to where it was. So long as I leave the door shut and dont go molesting the inventory it only cycles a few times a day for 5 minutes or so.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Hope you don't mind sharing your thread with me Brian.
Thought maybe seeing how there are a few of us here with different scenarios we could all share and others can see the different angles, trials and tribulations on wineador builds before they dive in.

After a lot of anticipation and whining I finally got my drawers in today. The Paduak hardwood fronts have a really nice grain pattern and go nicely with my hardwood floors. It was a toss up between that and the blood wood and I think I made the best possible choice. Forrest did a nice job on the construction, far better than I could have done. I dabble a little with my interior woodwork but there is a big difference between moulding, mantles etc and cabinet building. One thing I think I will do eventually is work a little on the finish on the fronts. The work is fine and has a rustic look but I think it will pop better if I can get them to the sheen of my hardwood and really give dimension to the grain. Finish type would have gone well had I ordered the walnut and put my wineador in breakfast nook as the kitchen and breakfast nook (If you want to call it a nook, room off the kitchen where we eat our daily meals is 12x16) have hand scraped hickory planks that would have complemented each other well. Thats just a fine line of busting out into the wifeys spaces. She respects mine so I respect hers.

The drawers were well packed, double boxed and wrapped together. I could smell the cedar before opening the box. The drawer pull hardware was shipped removed understandably to avoid packing issues. It only took a few minutes to install them. I had intended on seasoning in a cooler but the width of the drawers were just a bit wider than the two large coolers I have on hand. I could get 2 deep stacking front to back but then what was left was not enough to stack another row. So I ended up pulling my sticks from the wineador and putting them in the cooler along with all the beads. There was quite a bit of sawdust still on the wood and I used compressed air to blow down the drawers but found it insufficient. I had to use a slightly dampened (not wet) sponge to remove the remaining saw dust.

I put them in the wineador with a well dampened sponge on a ziploc bag in each drawer and left it run for a couple of hours. Started out right about ambient and worked up to about 60 fairly quickly but the differential in rh between top and bottom was pretty big. I came to the conclusion that the air box I made wasnt going to work just as planned but all is not lost. I simply removed the dead front door I put on it and the gap between the bottom of the false drawer and the bottom of the unit is sufficient to allow most of the air to come out from underneath then wash up the front of the glass. I noted like this that the air flow is not only going up the front but due to the suction pulling in at the back its washing across the tops and bottoms of all the drawers. I may mess with the TEC air flow and divert it down toward the intake of the circulation fan. Ill see how everything progresses once its loaded up. The current air flow washing up the door evened out the temp and humidity between the top and the bottom. Something that I suspected was going to happen but didnt prepare for is with a 5 drawer set up there is no way to effectively get the output of the TEC fan isolated where it isn't partially blocked by a drawer, this further pushes to the modification of deflecting the air downward as I dont want the cooled air blowing right across sticks then going back to cabinet temp repeatedly. Hell the more I think about it I may just jump on it and get it over with before I put sticks in. This will create a steady top to bottom down the back then bottom to top down the front circulation and give the air a chance to loose some of the just cooled effect as it runs down and through the fan box.

ATM I'm at 66*/68% RH. The plan is to let it ride to 78% or so then pull the sponges and let it settle to see what I get. If I'm below 65% Ill chunk the sponged back in. If above Ill chunk the beads in and wait for it to settle to 65% before loading it up.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

I don't mind sharing the thread at all!
The exchange of info is why I joined the forum to begin with. The exchange of information and experiences have been invaluable! So, thank you & everyone else that has chosen to contribute.
I've been enjoying a good stogie for quite some time but just started to store & collect, so much more indepth than I anticipated! So again, I appreciate all the experiences shared (good and bad).
The drawers look awesome! And your description of the craftsmanship falls right in line with everyone else's. I too dabble with woodwork around the house and thought about trying my hand at making my own drawers! But SC is not too easy to find here in NY and fine cabinet making cannot be substituted for. They look great!


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Thanks for the endorsement Brian. Sometimes people get upset if you post in their threads but I haven't run into that on Puff.

As of this morning its been sitting closed and untouched since the photo above was taken last night.
Current temp and humidity top to bottom 66*/72% so I'm headed in the right direction. Im going to fabricate an airflow deflector some time this weekend so I can put it in when I pull the drawers to load them up. What Im going to do is delfect it down and cover the inlet that is directly on the bottom so it wont just recirculate and leave the other 3 open to receive the airflow being pushed up from the bottom by the fan box.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Got up this morning I was at 72%RH. Had a family function to go to at 1PM and it reached a plateau.and hadn't changed.
I unplugged the cooling and left the fan box running. 8 hours later up to 75%.


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## boro62 (Jan 21, 2013)

mine has been hanging around 60-62rh and 75 temp. It seems that with my cooler set at 66 which is the highest it goes, it actually keeps the temp inside at 75. But still getting some decent amount of condensation bleh.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Mine is set at 64° and mine is reading 66/70° one row up from the bottom and 63/69° one row down from the top. Still waiting on my drawers. 

I here a hissing sound periodically that lasts about 45-60 seconds. I never hear my unit run but it must as it stays cool. 
My rooms ambient temp where the cooler sits is 74° currently and goes no higher than 76°. 

Anyone have an idea about the hissing? Wonder if it has something to do with taping the drain hole shut as I never heard it before starting the conversion.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Sorry you are having a rough go with it Boris. Have you tried putting some humidification media in the condensate catch basin? I emptied a 4oz jar of 70% crystals into a stocking and taped it into the catch basin with electrical tape. I figured doing this and using 65% beads that the crystals would absorb the condensate when running then release it back into the wineador with the beads doing the actual job of humidity control. Seems to be working for me. I dont get any condensate running down the back nor out the drain and every time Ive stuck my finger back there the stocking full of crystals is damp.

Got up this AM and RH at 80%. Pulled the DW sponges and going to leave it as is for several hours to see what the RH does. If its still above my target its time to plug it back and and chunk the beads in and let it level out. I am expecting some condensation even with the crystals this time as it has to pull it down from 75* to 66* and 80%RH at 75* is going to be higher at 66*. Matter of fact I think Im just going to go plug it in now and chunk the large 1 pound bag of beads in the bottom and finishing out my seasoning from there. I was expecting it to take a bit longer to get to 80%, like at least another day or two.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Never heard mine hiss, dont have a clue unless its the fan on high speed?

I added my air deflector and plugged it in with the 1 lb of 65% beads in the bottom in the fan box. I put a hygro in the middle drawer too just to see what its doing in the drawers. Ill check back after a bit to see hows it progressing and if I need to put the DW sponges back in or not. I spent the better part of an hour looking through my stash of miscellaneous junk in the basement trying to find something that would be suitable to use as a deflector. I had an idea of using a piece of plastic and using a heat gun to shape it into something similar to a dryer vent outside cover. I figured I was going to spend a bit doing it but after looking for a suitable piece of plastic to form I came up empty. Then a light bulb went off in my head. One of my other hobbies is RC cars, build and race them. I remembered having a dust cover that i pulled off of a cars chassis because it didnt vent enough heat and the motor and speed controller was getting too warm for my tastes. Glad I didnt chunk it because it was just what the doctor ordered to deflect the air from the TEC downward instead of outward. Got my measurement and hacked up the cover and low and behold this is what I cam up with. First covered the lower return grill with gorilla tape and left the other 3 open and used the same tape to put this contraption over the front of the fan.

I also covered all the holes on the fan box that were discharging up into the bottom drawer and left it to discharge all of it through the gap that is below the false drawer front, just over an inch of space. The result the fan box is now pulling the air from the top in the back then pushing it back out the front and washing up the glass creating a nice circulation of air with the cooled air from the TEC getting mixed into the circulation instead of blowing straight out into the drawers in front of it.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Any pics of it installed? Di you completely remove the previous version?

Edit: Ok. Went back and found your fan box pic. I assume you removed the hinged door and taped the holes up in the top therefore leaving it intact?


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Yep removed the door in the front and taped over the holes.
Ill put up pics of the deflector when I go to pulling drawers to fill them!

Just checked the hygros 66*/67% on the outside and the one in the middle drawer is 66*/66%

Looks like seasoning is done. It didnt drop like a rock after plugging it back in and adding the 1lb bag of beads to the fan box is pulling it down to where I want. I'll let it run like this for a few hours before making a decision on whether to start loading sticks today.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

8PM humidity dropped 1 point to 66% after 19 hours so I loaded the bottom drawer, waited 1.5 hours then loaded the middle drawer. Going to leave it as is until tomorrow and see how things are progressing. Most of the sticks going in were in the cooler and at 65% before I put them in a cooler while I seasoned the drawers. Two drawers in dropped it to 62% but Im betting that was mosre from having the drawers out while I decided what was going where and arranging. 45 minutes later its back to 64% Got them packed with over 100 sticks per drawer. For 50 RG sticks you can get 4 rows deep easy. The box pressed works even better. I going to have to use Dons method again of packing so tight you cant fit a greased BB in there.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

@JustinThyme Looking good Rob!!


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Looks good! Thanks for the play by play. Will help when I get mine.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

When I got up this morning RH dropped to 62%. I pulled the beads and spritzed them a bit. Ill hold off adding more until it picks up a point or two.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Well its all done, pics are posted in the wineador pics thread. Im very happy with the final result. Its holding temp and humidity steady at 68*/65% RH top to bottom, inside the drawers too. Just pulled the trigger on another one, same model, for box storage. I haven't ordered the shelves yet and honestly on the fence of where to source them or whether to source them at all. May just get crafty and build my own. They dont have to be made out of SC as this is going to be loaded with nothing but boxes that are made from SC. Ill kick that idea around for a bit. Hell I still have Brazilian cherry hardwood flooring left, 4 cases, from when I did the floor in my family room when we bought the house 7 years ago. The previous owner had butt ugly blue carpet in there and we closed at 3PM and I was ripping out carpet at 3:01 PM. Already had the wood, picked it up the day before and that stuff is heavy! I would have to plane down those planks though as its 3/4 solid hardwood and when I say hard, this stuff it HARD! Then again if I cut it right and use splines I can use the tongue portion of the tongue and groove to slide in the shelf slots. Ill have to ponder this one a bit. I like Forrest's work, just a long lead time even with a rush order and with shelves its not going to make that much of a difference what I go with.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

If I were you I'd just some SC planks. Cut to width, slide two in each slot where you want a shelf. Then you can drill some holes or dremmel some slots for air flow. I just like the idea of SC as I think it would help keep the RH more stable. Could be wrong about that though.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

I dont think the SC planks would really help to any degree. I was stable as hell a few weeks with the metal racks and boxes full of sticks and a tupperware bin with sticks while waiting for my drawers to come in.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Maybe just use the metal racks it comes with then?


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Dont like them, they are curved for wine bottles and two metal objects I despise, Chrome and the fake shiny brass. YUK!


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Dont like them, they are curved for wine bottles and two m*etal objects I despise, Chrome and the fake shiny brass. YUK!*


I had a feeling it had something to do with OCD.... :bounce:


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Yep! Biggest reason is the curved shelves but yes I'm anal retentive about chrome and fake shiny brass like substances. When we moved into our house 7 years ago top of the list other than the butt ugly blue carpet was all the door hardware, cabinet hardware, wall sconces on the front landing, hanging fixture in the front foyer, hanging fixture in the stair well second floor, florescent lighting in the kitchn and the chandelier in the dining room got replaced. All shiny ugly fake brass finish or corny fake oak veneer in the kitchen. All the hardware was replaced with brushed nickel, the sconces were replaced with black and the chandelier in the dining room was my wife's choice with a brown finish. The kitchen got that nasty florescent fixture tossed, hole patched, ceiling repainted and all recessed lighting put in.

Here is the before and after of our kitchen, went from butt ugly country kitchen with 20 year old appliances to a work of art and all stainless appliances. The worst part was the floor. 3 layers Deep! Ugly cheap laminate over white engineered hardwood over sheet vinyl over 1/4 inch plywood. All the baseboards were the cheap plastic peel and stick stuff which all got replaced with hardwood to match the floor. My back still hurts from ripping all that out and putting down new hardwood. The only thing we didnt do was the granite counter tops, we just picked out the slab and they were custom made for our installation and a crew of big burly dudes installed it. The longest piece from the corner, past the sink and up into the other corner about whipped their asses! I cant imagine how much that piece weighs.

Before

After


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Wow that is a vast improvement! You both must be very satisfied with the outcome of your efforts
Looks very inviting and relaxing.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Thanks
We went through every room one by one. One of the biggest things the previous owner did that pissed me off was painting over butt ugly floral wallpaper in nearly every room. Its hard enough to get off as it is but when its been kilzed a couple of times then painted OMG! A week a room getting wallpaper off, 1 day of patching and sanding, 1 day of painting. There were a few spots that were so bad I got PO'd and took a hammer to it and just put up new sheets of drywall, took less time!


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Well, if the kitchen is indicative of the rest of the house...
...job well done!!!&#55357;&#56846;
Really nice! Better than the sweet stacked wineador!&#55357;&#56397;


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

brimy623 said:


> Well, if the kitchen is indicative of the rest of the house...
> ...job well done!!!��
> Really nice! Better than the sweet stacked wineador!��


Thanks!
It is, some rooms even better.

OK Ive gone off topic too much already, nothing is better than the sweet stacked wineador! LOL
Im very pleased with the final product and that the hardwood Paduak fronts blend in nicely with the Brazilian cherry floor. Its not only very functional, it looks nice too with the all black which the picture frames, TV entertainment center etc are also black. It just belongs in that room......perfectly!


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Well I've had my drawers and shelf in for 3 weeks now. I have been wiping my drawer fronts down with DW on a sponge. About 3 times now. I have about 1.5 pounds of HF beads in the bottom which I have added DW too several times, I also have 3 69% Bovida packs on the top shelf. I had a small sponge in a bowl soaked with DW in the middle drawer and recently replaced it with about 1/2 pound of odorless silica KL, an off brand that crackles when I add water to it. They don't carry the Exquisite. 

My RH is 59% bottom, 56% middle and 62% too, all calibrated. I have 2 small battery operated fans on top shelf blowing towards the door. Very light air movement. I also have a computer fan on the bottom back right corner blowing up which is on a timer that runs from noon till 4pm each day. I'd love to get an even 62-65% top to bottom. 
My temps are 69° top and bottom and 72° in the middle. My drain hole is plugged with a 1/2 pound bag of beads along the drip trough just in case. 

Any ideas?


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Try unplugging the cooler while it seasons and remove the humidification media and use only sponges with DW. You will end up with saturated media and have to dry it out.

Mine were done in less than a week. I did have to wipe down all the drawers with a damp sponge but that wasnt about humidification. It was about getting out the massive amount of saw dust that was coating everything.

I had mine sitting unplugged with 5 sponges and just the fan box running for a few days then plugged the cooler back in for a couple more. I heated the sponges for 15 seconds each in the nuke box once daily. When I hit 78% I pulled the sponges and put the beads in and in 24-36 hours I was sitting at 66%.


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## Isonj (Apr 12, 2013)

As Rob said, I have the four drawer setup and I put a sponge in each drawer and one on the top shelf. I did not have it plugged in and I reach 75% in a couple of days. Also, I have read that so e will warm the sponge in a microwave to help with the process.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Well, I'm having some good fortune!
With the temp dropping into the low 70's & into the 40's at night, my ambient is down to the low to mid 70's!!
Read the hygro this morning, 67%/67*!!
now I just have to keep an eye on how often she turns on and check the condensation.
Still waiting to hear from Forrest about drawers. Maybe I'll reach out to him again.

Cleatus,
not having drawers, and having had so many Rh issues myself, I can't really give any advice regarding them, but Rob & Jim's advice sound sage! And considering their success, I would give it a go!


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

So I need to remove all of my sticks and start over?


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Cleatus, I would have not added my sticks until I had the drawers etc ready to go.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Cleatus, I would have not added my sticks until I had the drawers etc ready to go.


They were....


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

So you had the RH settled and when you added sticks it took a dive?


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> So you had the RH settled and when you added sticks it took a dive?


Yes. I have been adding DW every other day or so since via the methods mentioned above.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

First thing is to pull all your drawers to the front. I have mine sitting where the drawer fronts are even with the cooler case. This gives an additional inch or so circulation in the back.

Did you plug your drain? 
I didnt plug mine but I put a stocking full of 70% Xikar crystals in the catch basin to absorb and then release the condensate.

It may be as simple as the air flow. Some others have posted they have no issues, I put a fan in mine and stay even top to bottom.

For all the water you are adding it has to be going somewhere.

The only other thing would be if you had really dry sticks to start with.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Drain is plugged (taped). HF bead sock on top of hole. 

Drawers and shelves just now moved out 1/2 inch more as suggested. Also, just added DW to HF beads and soaked KL that sits at mid level in drawer. 

RH after 12 hours of that:
Bottom 64, middle 58, top 64. Weird on the middle reading.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Middle is probably due to the TEC running.
Whats your ambient room temps doing? Just curious as to how much the TEC is running. 
I would let it level out and revisit in 24 hours. 
Also how loaded is it. I know the curiosity and wanting it to be correct right now is killing you but I would hate to see you peak past where you need to be and find yourself trying to dry everything out.
I would try to leave it be for 24 hours at a whack before changing anything.


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## Yambor44 (Jul 31, 2013)

Yeah, I usually go more than 24 from any media changes for that very reason. My room ambient is 74-76° F. I never hear my unit run unless I have a power interruption, then it defaults to 54° and the compressor (or whatever cools these type) and fans kick on. 

That's what befuddles me about the middle RH. I never hear the unit run so wouldn't that's an the TEC isn't running? My fans for thw unit itself are at the top. You can see the top half when you look across the top shelf to the back.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Ambient temp should be fine. I run mine at 75* ambient. Another tid bit is drawer/shelf arrangement. I have the 5 drawer 1 shelf configuration and ended up two drawers up and 3 drawers down with the shelf in between and all the drawers pulled to the front. I don't know if my fan box helps or not, all I know is that my configuration is working.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Hey Guys!
Was experiencing pretty stable temps & rH% due to the cooler ambient temps.:banana:
Still haven't heard anything from Forrest regarding the cost of some drawers & shelves so I'm still using boxes. Gonna pursue another source for drawers & shelves.
I noticed something weird when checking my rH! My unit was reading 65* but my hygro was reading *59**!!
What makes it weird is the hygro was reading 68* at 63* on the unit.
Confusing!? I know the rH will drop when the unit is cooling, but shouldn't the temp variation between unit & hygro stay constant??:noidea:


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## aphex242 (Oct 24, 2012)

Heads up on this:

NewAir CC-280E 400 Count Cigar Cooler

Forrest posted this on his Facebook page. Apparently he's making the shelves and drawers for them now too, and it can all be purchased at once. Not sure how the pricing works out, I haven't done the math. Still definitely relevant to this thread.


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## voiceoverguy (Jan 19, 2011)

aphex242 said:


> Heads up on this:
> 
> NewAir CC-280E 400 Count Cigar Cooler
> 
> Forrest posted this on his Facebook page. Apparently he's making the shelves and drawers for them now too, and it can all be purchased at once. Not sure how the pricing works out, I haven't done the math. Still definitely relevant to this thread.


Very interesting...


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

aphex242 said:


> Heads up on this:
> 
> NewAir CC-280E 400 Count Cigar Cooler
> 
> Forrest posted this on his Facebook page. Apparently he's making the shelves and drawers for them now too, and it can all be purchased at once. Not sure how the pricing works out, I haven't done the math. Still definitely relevant to this thread.


Thanks for the heads up about Forrest's continued success! I wish him the all best.
Just confirms that I need to find another source.


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## brimy623 (May 25, 2013)

Well, I finally got two drawers & a shelf from Forrest!








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I wiped them down with DW to season & remove what little saw dust was on them.
And so far the SC has done wonders for my rH stability.
17 hrs in & my rH is holding at a steady 66%, even with the unit running!! :cheer2:








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I'm going to wait a few more hours & then load it up. Probably load 1 draw at a time with a few hours in between depending on the rH fluctuation.
I will be ordering 2 more draws in the next couple of weeks!

Hoping that the SC does the trick & locks in my rH.


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